1 ! 



i I ! 




Class iSSHJ- 



Copyright N^_ 



Mil 



CC£VR1CHT DEPOSrr. 



INSECT PESTS 



OF 



FARM, GARDEN AND 
ORCHARD 



BY 

E. DWIGHT SANDERSON 

11 

Formerly Entomologist of the Delaware, Texas and Neiv Hampshire Agricultural 

Experiment Stations and Director of the New Hampshire and 

West Virginia Agricultural Experiment Stations. 



SECOND EDITION 
REVISED AND ENLARGED 

BY 

LEONARD MARION PEAIRS 

Professor of Entomology West Virginia University 



NEW YORK 

JOHN WILEY AND SONS, Inc. 

LovDov : CHAPMAN & HALL, Limited. 
1921 







COPYRIGHT, 1912 
BY 

E. DWIGHT SANDERSON 



COPYRIGHT, 1921 
BY 

E. DWIGHT SANDERSON 

AND 

LEONARD M. PEAIRS 



Printed in the U. S. A. 

APR 27 1921 
?)CI.A611805 



PREFACE 



The edition of the writer's "Insects Injurious to Staple 
Crops," first published ten years ago, having been exhausted, the 
publishers requested a revision. It was found, however, that the 
advances in economic entomology during the past decade were such 
that it was necessary practically to rewrite the book. At the 
time it was first published two other books were projected; one 
to deal with the insects affecting garden crops, and the other to 
discuss those affecting fruits. Pressure of regular work pre- 
vented the author from completing the manuscript for these 
works and in 1907 Dr. Chittenden issued his excellent book on 
" Insects Injurious to Vegetables," so that there seemed to be 
no immediate demand for another volume on that subject. At 
the same time two other well-known entomologists were work- 
ing upon books which would cover fruit insects, so that the 
writer abandoned the field to them. Subsequently, the work 
of one of these friends was cut short by his sudden death, and 
the other abandoned the task, at least for the present. 

Under these circumstances, it seemed that there was a distinct 
place for a book to cover all the insects affecting the crops of 
farm, garden and orchard, and having leisure to devote to it, the 
author developed the work in its present form. 

It has been the author's effort to discuss all of the more impor- 
tant insects of farm, and garden and orchard at sufficient length 
to give a clear idea of their life histories and habits, and also the 
best means of control, so that the book may be used as a reference 
work both by the student of economic entomology and by 
the practical farmer, gardener, or fruit-grower. Insects of minor 
or local importance have been purposely omitted. The insects 
of practically all of the leading crops are considered, except the 
citrus fruits. With these the author is unfamiliar, but it is 
hoped to add a chapter upon them by a competent authority 
in a subsequent edition. In general, the discussion of insects 



ii PREFACE 

and their control as given is based upon conditions east of the 
Rockies, and practically no consideration has been given to the 
conditions of the Pacific Coast or of the irrigated country of the 
far West. 

The author is well aware that there are doubtless many errors 
of fact or of wrong emphasis in these pages. Such must nec- 
essarily be the case in a work the greater part of which must be 
compiled. All of the leading authorities on the subject discussed 
have been consulted and the writer has endeavored to present 
their evidence fairly, with such interpretation as his personal 
knowledge made possible. He will be greatly indebted to those 
who will aid him in securing the accuracy of the work by report- 
ing any errors or by suggesting improvements in it, as it is hoped 
to revise the pages from time to time so that they may serve 
as a reliable reference work upon our insect pests of ihe farm, 
the garden, and the orchard. 

On the following pages are given the sources from which 
the illustrations have been secured, but the author wishes to 
express his special appreciation of the very large number of figures 
which were furnished him by Dr. L. 0. Howard, Chief of the 
Bureau of Entomology, and Mr. J. A. Arnold, Chief of the 
Division of Publications, of the United States Department of 
Agriculture, either as electrotypes or original drawings or photo- 
graphs, and to Ginn & Company of Boston, for the loan of 
numerous electrotypes made for an Elementary Entomology by 
Prof. C. F. Jackson and the writer, now being pubUshed by 
them. 

E. DwiGKT Sanderson. 

West Virginia University, 
morqantown. 



PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION. 



No better indication of the activity of the students of American 
economic entomology could be cited than the fact that a text 
book dealing with injurious insects requires revision at rather 
frequent intervals. The present revision is issued in the hope 
that it may record in some measure the progress which investi- 
gators have made since the book was first prepared. 

Since the pubHcation of the first edition the senior author 
has left active work in economic entomology, but he has been 
fortunate in securing the collaboration of his former colleague, 
who has made a thorough revision of the original text. He has 
added several new articles and three new chapters deahng with 
the insect pests directly affecting man and the domestic animals 
and with the insects affecting citrus fruits. 

Other changes in the text will be found to be minor ones, 
with the exception of the additions mentioned, and are mainly 
for the purpose of bringing up to date the recommendations for 
control. 

No attempt to conform to the latest usage in naming of 
famihes has been made for the reason that most students using 
this text will be more familiar with the names as used in Com- 
stock's Manual than with the modern usage. 

May, 1920. E. Dwight Sanderson. 



Ill 



ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 



The authors wish to express their sincere appreciation of the 
courtesy extended -by those friends mentioned below who have 
assisted in this work by furnishing electrotypes, photographs and 
drawings, thus making possible the illustration of the volume. 

The United States Department of Agriculture, through Dr. 
L. O. Howard, Chief of the Bureau of Entomology, and Mr. 
J. A. A. Arnold, Chief of the Division of Publications, furnished 
a large number of electrotypes and plates. The illustrations cred- 
ited to Dr. C. V. Riley have been secured from various sources. 

Dr. S. A. Forbes, State Entomologist of Ilhnois, Prof. Glen 
W. Herrick of Cornell University, Prof. F. L. Washburn of Min- 
nesota, Prof. H. A. Gossard of the Ohio Station, Prof. R. H. 
Petit of Michigan Agr. College, Prof. P. J. Parrott of the New 
York Station at Geneva, and the late Dr. John B. Smith of 
New Jersey, all furnished several illustrations. Prof. W. E. 
Rumsey of West Virginia made his excellent collection of photo- 
graphs available. 

Prof. H. Garman of Kentucky, Director R. W. Thatcher of 
the Washington Expt. Station, Prof. S. J. Hunter of the University 
of Kansas, Prof . T. B. Symons of Maryland, Prof. H. E.Summers 
of Iowa, Director P. H. Rolfs of the Florida Station, Dr. T. C. 
Johnson of the Virginia Truck Station, Director J. C. Kendall of 
the New Hampshire Station, Director S. W. Fletcher of the Vir- 
ginia Station, Dr. W. E. Britton of Connecticut, Prof. R. I. Smith 
of North Carolina, Dr. A. L. Quaintance of the Bureau of Ento- 
mology, Director F. B. Mumford of the Missouri Station, and 
Prof. C. S. Crandall of the Ilhnois Station, all furnished several 
valuable illustrations. 

Dr. E. W. Berger kindly read over the copy for the chapter 
on Citrus Fruit Insects and assisted by correcting mistaken 
statements and offering many helpful suggestions for the im- 
provement of the chapter. 



iV 



ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS v 

The Friend Mfg. Co., The Deming Co., F. E. Myers and 
Bro., The Spraymotor Co., E. C. Brown and Co., The Goulds 
Mfg. Co., and the Bean Spray Pump Co., all makers of spraying 
appUances, furnished many of the illustrations of such apparatus, 
while the Corona Chemical Co. and the Niagara Sprayer Co. 
furnished some of the illustrations of dusters. 

The Orange Judd Publishing Co. furnished some of the Riley 
figures. 

Many others helped by allowing their illustrations to be used. 

All illustrations have been properly credited in the text. 
Credit for much of the direct and indirect assistance freely given 
by many persons can not be extended to individuals but is none 
the less appreciated. 

The publishers of this volume, John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 
have done all in their power to cooperate with the authors and 
make the task of preparing the manuscript as light as possible, 
and to them and their organization we wish to extend our thanks. 



CONTENTS 



Preface to the First Edition i 

Preface to the Revised Edition iii 

Acknowledgments iv 

Chapter page 

I. Injury to Crops by Insect Pests 1 

II. Beneficial Insects, Predaceous and Parasitic 8 

III. Structure and Development of Insects^ 20 

IV^ri'ARM Methods for the Control of iNSECTsy. 29 

V.tInsecticides ^. A, 39 

Vli^^RAYiNG and Dusting Apparatus .! ( 59 

VII. Insects Affecting Grains, Grasses and "Miscellaneous 

Crops 78 

VIII. Insects Injurious to Small Grains 117 

IX. Insects Injurious to Corn 143 

X. Insects Injurious to Stored Grains 176 

XI. Insects Injurious to Clover and Alfalfa 189 

XII. Insects Injurious to Tobacco 212 

XIII. Insects Injurious to Cotton 226 

XIV. Insects Injurious to Potatoes and Tomatoes 256 

XV. Insects Injurious to Beans and Peas 278 

XVI. Insects Injurious to Beets and Spinach 299 

XVII. Insects Injurious to Cabbage and Related Crops 314 

XVIII. Insects Injurious to Melons, Cucumbers, Squash, Etc . . 340 

XIX. Insects Injurious to Miscellaneous Garden Crops 361 

XX. Insects Injurious to the Strawberry 389 

XXI. Insects Injurious to the Raspberry and Blackberry .... 403 

XXII. Insects Injurious to the Currant and Gooseberry 418 

XXIII. Insects Injurious to the Grape 432 

XXIV. Insects Injurious to Orchard Fruits 470 

XXV. Insects Injurious to the Apple and Pear 514 

XXVI. Insects Injurious to the Peach, Plum and Cherry 575 

XXVII. Insects Injurious to Citrus Fruits 599 

XXVIII. Insects Injurious to Man and in the Household 635 

XXIX. Insects Injurious to Domestic Animals and Poultry. . . . 657 

Bibliography 689 

Index 692 

vi 



INSECT PESTS 

OF 

FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



CHAPTER I 
THE INJURY TO CROPS BY INSECT PESTS 

Ever since the locust plagues in the time of the Pharaohs his- 
tory is replete with accounts of insect scourges and the enormous 
losses they have caused the agriculturists of all ages. However, 
instead of diminishing with the advancement of agricultural 
methods, injurious insects have undoubtedly become both more 
numerous and more destructive in modern times. " In no coun- 
try in the world do insects impose a heavier tax on farm products 
than in the United States. The losses resulting from the depre- 
dations of insects on all the plant products of the soil, both in 
their growing and in their stored state, together with those on 
live stock, exceed the entire expenditures of the National Gov- 
ernment, including the pension roll and the maintenance of the 
Army and the Navy."* '' Very careful estimates, based on crop 
reports and actual insect damage over a series of years, show 
that the loss due to insect pests of farm products, including 
fruits and hve stock, now reaches the almost inconceivable total 
of $1,000,000,000, annually."! The above quotations from Mr. 
C. L. Marlatt; Assistant Chief of the Bureau of Entomology, 
United States Department of Agriculture, may appear to the reader 
either ludicrous or startling, according to the extent of his infor- 
mation concerning the role which insects play in our Agricultural 

* C. L. Marlatt, Yearbook IT. S. Department of Agriculture, 1904, p. 461. 
I C. L. Marlatt, Journal of Economic Entomology, IV, 109. 



2 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

economy, which forms the warp of American prosperity. It 
should be borne in mind that these figures are based on pre-war 
estimates and that they now need considerable revision upward 
but that the totals will not reach the amounts expended by 
the nation during a state of war, 

A brief resume of the damage done by insect pests, of the 
costs of fighting them and of the estimates which form the basis 
for the above statements will make them more convincing. 

Growing Cereals. — Probably no insect does as widespread 
damage as the Hessian-fiy, attacking our chief staple, wheat, as 
well as rye and barley. One-tenth of the whole crop, valued at 
$150,000,000 to $175,000,000 is generally conceded to be destroyed 
by this pest every year. In some sections the loss is frequently 
as great as 30 to 50 per cent, and it undoubtedly was responsible 
in a great measure for the necessity for governmental regulations 
of the use of wheat flour during the great war. The southern 
grain-louse or " green-bug " caused a loss estimated at from 
$5,000,000 to $10,000,000 in Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas in 
1907, and every year there is a considerable shrinkage in the wheat 
crop as a result of the presence of this and other species of plant- 
lice. This injury will doubtless amount, on the average, to as 
much as 2 or 3 per cent of the entire crop, worth from $30,000,000 
to $50,000,000. 

The corn crop of 1919 was worth at least three and one-half 
billions of dollars. The total was reduced at least two to three 
per cent by the chinch-bug and not less than 5 per cent by the 
corn-earworm while other insects accounted for several per cent 
more or less. Estimating the total insect depreciation of this 
crop at only ten per cent gives a total of $350,000,000 for the one 
year. 

The total value of cereal crops in 1919 was over$7,000,000,000, 
which was undoubtedly at least ten per cent less than it would 
have been could the insect injury have been totally eliminated. 

Hay and Forage Crops. — A host of small insects attack our 
grasses and forage crops, many of them being so small that they 
are unnoticed, though their aggregate injury is sometimes 
enormous. Of the larger pests of grasses and forage plants the 
army worms are among the best known and have often caused a 
loss of over half a million dollars to a single state in one season. 



INJURY TO CROPS BY INSECT PESTS 3 

Grasshoppers of various species are also always more or less 
injurious and often become a serious menace. Probably the most 
serious injury, however, is done by subterranean larva) such as 
the cut-worms, wireworms, white grubs, and webworms, which 
breed in sod land, and by the hordes of little leaf -hoppers which 
are always prevalent, but whose injury often passes unnoticed. 
Ten per cent of the haj' crop was worth $150,000,000 in 1919 and 
this is a fair estimate of the damage done to hay and forage crops 
by their insect enemies. 

Cotton. — The cotton plant has a number of injurious insect 
enemies, of which the boll weevil, bollworm, and leafworm are 
the most injurious. In 1904 the writer made a statistical study 
of the decrease in the cotton crop of Texas due to the boll 
weevil, and showed that it was then costing that state $25,000,000 
per annum.* This estimate has been confirmed by independent 
investigations made by Mr. W. D. Hunter of the U. S. Bureau 
of Entomology, and although the loss in Texas is not so serious 
at present, the weevil has spread eastward as far as Georgia, so 
that its total injury remains practically the same, and has 
undoubtedly been a large factor in the higher price of cotton 
in recent years. The bollworm is most injurious in the south- 
western cotton-producing States, where it causes a loss from 
5 to 60 per cent of the crop. The total damage to cotton by 
the bollworm is approximately $100,000,000 per annum and not 
infrequently exceeds that amount. In 1880 the United States 
Entomological Commission made an investigation of the cotton 
worm and valued its ravages at $30,000,000, but with the 
extensive use of Paris green and arsenical poisons its injury has 
been greatly reduced and now amounts to from $5,000,000 to 
$20,000,000 annually. Various minor pests of the cotton plant 
inflict a considerable amount of local injury and with the above 
pests damage the crop at least 10 per cent, worth $160,000,000 
in 1919. 

Tobacco. — Tobacco is attacked by insects, which form one 
of the chief " bugbears " of tobacco growing, at all stages of its 
existence. Ten per cent of the crop, worth $35,000,000, is cer- 
tainly destroyed by them every year. 

* E. D. Sanderson, The Boll Weevil and the Cotton Crop of Texas. (Bul- 
letin Dept. of Agriculture, Insurance, Statistics and History, Austin, Texas, 
1905, p. 28, 7 maps.) 



4 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

Truck Crops. — Truck crops are peculiarly susceptible to 
insect attacks, and their control forms one of the chief items in 
the cost of production. It is safe to say that truck crops suffer 
from insect ravages fully twice as much as do the staples, or 20 
per cent of their total value. Statistics are not available for 
the present value of truck crops, but they were probably worth 
$1,500,000,000 in 1919, making the insect tax for the trucker 
fully $300,000,000. 

Fruits. — Fruit trees are also much more seriously injured 
by insects than are the staple crops, and their control involves 
a large expense to the fruit-grower. Where it is not combated, 
the codhng moth, or apple worm, causes a loss of from 
30 to 50 per cent of the crop, and where it is controlled by 
spraying a considerable expense is involved. The loss and cost 
of treatment for this pest alone amount, to $35,000,000 for the 
United States, and were it not for the fact that it is now largely 
controlled in the principal fruit-growing sections, the loss would 
be double or treble this sum. The loss due to the San Jose scale 
is difficult to estimate, but it is well known that it has destroyed 
milhons of trees and that in the principal fruit regions where this 
pest is prevalent it is necessary to treat the trees annually 
at a cost of from 10 to 25 cents per tree, so that $10,000,000 a 
year would be a very conservative estimate of its annual cost. 
Both deciduous and citrus fruits have a host of insect pests, 
always present and doing more or less damage and occasionally 
becoming so abundant as to threaten the life of the trees or their 
crops. Fifteen per cent of the value of our fruit products, 
worth at least $75,000,000, is certainly destroyed by insect 
pests every year. 

Forest Insects. — Only those who have had opportunity to 
observe the ravages of insects in timber and in timber products 
can appreciate the enormous losses which they occasion. Prob- 
ably no one is better informed upon this matter than Dr. A. D. 
Hopkins, in charge of the Forest Insect Investigations of the 
U. S. Bureau of Entomology, who has made a life study of these 
pests in all parts of the country. In a recent circular* he states 
that " the amount of insect-killed and damaged timber left in the 
woods, plus the reduction in value of that utilized, to be charged 

*A. D. Hopkins, Circular 129, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr. 



INJURY TO CROPS BY INSECT PESTS 5 

to insects is not far from an equivalent of 10 per cent of the value 
of the annual output of forest products of all kinds, in the rough. 
The total value of the forest products of the United States in 1907 
is given as $1,280,000,000; the losses from insect depredations 
would therefore represent an annual loss in cash value of more 
than $100,000,000." To this should be added a similar loss to farm 
woodlots, which may be estimated at an additional $10,000,000. 
The insect injury to the shade trees of city streets, parks, 
and estates should also be mentioned, for such pests as the gypsy 
moth, the elm leaf-beetle, tussock moths, etc., are not only causing 
enormous losses and large expense for their control, but they are 
often reducing the values of real estate and through killing the 
trees are destroying the scenic value of property and changing the 
esthetic environment in a manner which it will require many 
decades to remedy, if the previous conditions can ever be even 
partially reproduced. The State Forester of Massachusetts has 
recently shown that the New England States and the Federal 
Government have spent fully $7,000,000 in fighting the gypsy and 
brown-tail moths in New England, and at the present time the 
New England States, the Federal Government, municipalities and 
private individuals are spending over $1,000,000 per annum 
in this warfare for the preservation of their shade and forest 
trees. 

Live Stock. — Insect pests, including the ticks and mites, are 
almost as important as enemies of live stock as of crops. The 
principal drawback to cattle raising in the South is the Texas 
fever, transmitted by the cattle tick, which has been charged by 
the officials of the bureau of Animal Industry with a loss of 
$100,000,000 annually. The ox-warble, which causes the "grubby" 
hides of cattle, causes a loss estimated at from $30,000,000 to 
$50,000,000 per year due to the depreciated value of the hides and 
the lessened quantity and poorer quality of the beef of affected 
animals. The screw-worm fly is a constant annoyance to cattle and 
source of loss on the range, and numerous biting and parasitic flies 
cause a considerable loss to the grower of live stock, both through 
actual damage and through the annoyance preventing growth and 
production. The sheep scab, sheep tick, the sheep bot — causing 
" staggers " or " grub-in-the-head "— horn-fly, buffalo-fly, black- 
fly, and numerous species of lice which affect all of the domestic 
animals, are among the pests which must be combated by the 



6 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

stockman. In 1919 the live stock products were worth 
$8,000,000,000, and it is estimated that fully 10 per cent of this 
amount was lost through injury from insects. 

Stored Products. — Even after the crops have been gathered 
and garnered, and indeed after they and animal products have 
been manufactured, they are constantly subject to the attacks of 
numerous " weevils," " moths," and other insect pests of stored 
products. Every housewife and every merchant knows that only 
through constant surveillance these ravages can be prevented. 
Mills, tobacco warehouses, storage houses, and vessels, must be 
frequently cleaned and often must be fumigated to prevent the 
increase of insect pests peculiar to them. It is estimated that at 
least 3 per cent of the cereal crops are destroyed by insects while 
in storage, which would mean a loss of $200,000,000, and in many 
cases the loss to corn, particularly in the South, is much greater. 
The total loss due to insects in stored goods of all kinds is impos- 
sible to estimate, but would fall not far short of $300,000,000. 
With this brief statement of the losses due to insect pests we 
may summarize them in a table which will show that the total 
is based upon conservative estimates. 



Annual Values of Farm Crops and Losses Chargeable to 
Insect Pests*. 



PRODUCT 



Cereals 

Hay and Forage . . . . 

Cotton 

Tobacco 

Truck Crops 

Sugars 

Fruits 

Farm Forests 

Miscellaneous Crops 
Animal Products . . . . 



VALUE 



$7,000,000,000 

1,500,000,000 

1,600,000,000 

375,000,000 

1,500,000,000 

200,000,000 

500,000,000 

110,000,000 

250,000,000 

8,000,000,000 



PERCENTAGE 
OF LOSS 



Total $21,035,000,000 



Natural Forests and Forest Products. 
Products in Storage 



Grand Total . 



10 
10 
10 
10 
20 
10 
15 
10 
5 
5 



AMOUNT OF 
LOSS 



$700,000,000 

150,000,000 

160,000,000 

37,500,000 

300,000,000 

20,000,000 

75,000,000 

11,000,000 

12,500,000 

400,000,000 



$1,866,000,000 

100,000,000 
300,000,000 



$2,266,000,000 



♦Based on estimates from the U. S. Bureau of Entomology with modifications by the 
writers. Crop values based on estimates from the U. S. Department of Agriculture Year- 
book for 1918 and various estimates for the year 1919. 



INJURY TO CROPS BY INSECT PESTS 7 

This table will indicate that two billions of dollars is a con- 
servative estimate of the damage done by insects annually to 
the agricultural interests of the country. 

The old saying, " One man's loss is another man's gain " will 
not apply to this damage. While the fluctuation in the amount 
of crops does influence prices received by the farmers it does not 
obviate the loss, even though the farmer receives as much money 
for the reduced crop as he would have for a full crop. The 
effect is merely to shift the burden of the loss from the farmer 
to the consumer. The damage done by the insects remains as a 
definite destruction of wealth of the community just as truly as 
loss from fire and storm, even though such loss is borne not by 
the owner of the property destroyed but by an insurance company. 

A real benefit to the community at large from these insects 
is coming to be recognized more and more. That is, that to 
succeed against the handicaps of insect injury as well as the other 
hazards incident to modern agriculture, the farmer must be- 
come a student of the factors insuring success. He must, as he 
usually can, learn the methods of agriculture best suited to pre- 
vent the loss from insects. This will tend to broaden his educa- 
tion, to make him more observant of conditions affecting suc- 
cessful farming and indirectly is bound to make him a more 
intelligent and efficient farmer and a better citizen. Who can 
say that such benefit does not largely overbalance the tremendous 
loss due to the presence of the insects . 



CHAPTER II 

BENEFICIAL INSECTS, PREDACEOUS AND PARASITIC 

Ladybird-beetles 

After his strawberries have been ruined by the strawberry 
weevil, the garden truck by cutworms, the wheat despoiled by the 
Hessian fly, the melon-patch fallen a prey to plant-lice, and the 
fruit crop has been a failure on account of the codhng moth, plum 
curculio, and San Jose scale, it is scarcely surprising that the 
farmer does as one of my acquaintances did and " orders the hands 
to kill everything that crawls." 

But such would be entirely too heroic a measure, and if strictly 
adhered to the remedy would be as bad as the disease, for it would 
mean not only useless labor, but the destruction of the most effect- 
ive means whereby insect pests are held in check. We pride 
ourselves — and justly — that with our spray pumps and deadly 
sprays many crops can be effectually protected; but were it not 
for those other insects which feed upon these injurious forms, 
what an enormous, and, in some instances, futile task it would be ! 

Among these beneficial insects the Httle ladybird-beetles of 
the family Coccinellidce are entitled to be in the first rank. 
Almost all these beetles and larvae feed upon plant-hce and scale 
insects. Of such value are those feeding upon scale insects 
that not many years ago several Austrahan species were imported 
into CaUfornia that they might prey upon the San Jose and other 
scales. One of these was eminently successful and almost com- 
pletely destroyed the cottony cushion-scale. 

Of those feeding upon plant-hce, one of the most common 
is the Nine-spotted Ladybird (Coccinellanovemnotata). This 
beetle is about one-fourth of an inch long, with black head and 
body. The wing-covers are orange-yellow marked with nine 
black spots — four on each side and one on the central suture. 
The larva has been fancied to resemble a miniature alhgator; 
it is nearly twice as long as wide, almost black, marked with 
bluish and orange spots, and has long legs, which carry it around 
quite rapidly. The beetles hibernate during the winter and 



BENEFICIAL INSECTS, PREDACEOUS AND PARASITIC 9 

come forth in the spring and lay their eggs wherever the young 
will be able to find food when they hatch. When the larva 
has satisfied its ravenpus appetite and become full grown it 
fastens itself to a leaf or twig, — seemingly by its tail, if such 




Fig. 



1. — The nine-spotted ladybird (Coccinella novemnotata) , and its larva; 
enlarged. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



a term might be allowed, — transforms to the pupa, and in a week 
or ten days the adult beetle emerges from the pupal skin. This 
life-cycle is repeated several times during the summer season, 
before the fall brood enters winter quarters. 

Another very common form among plant-lice on garden truck 
is the little Adalia bipundata, or Two-spotted Ladybird. It is 




Fig. 2. — The two-spotted ladybird {Adalia bipundata): a, larva; 6, mouth- 
parts of same; c, claw of same; d, pupa; e, adult; /, antenna of same; 
all enlarged. (After Marlatt, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

slightly smaller than the preceding, and with only one black spot 
on each wing-cover (Fig. 2). 



10 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Several other species, in the genus Hippodamia, are very- 
useful, and among them the Convergent Ladybird {Hippo- 
damia convergens) is one of the best known. Its name is received 
from two white dashes on the black thorax, which converge 
posteriorly. The thorax has also a white margin, and there are 
thirteen black dots on its orange wing-covers. These larvae 




Fig. 3. — The convergent ladybird {Hippodamia convergens): a, adult; b, pupa; 
c, larva; enlarged. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

and beetles are very common among the plant-lice on melon- 
vines, and are an important factor in their extermination. They 
have also been noted for eating the black peach aphis and many 
other plant-lice. 

A form which is often very abundant among plant-lice on corn 
is the Spotted Ladybird (Megilla maculata). The head, thorax, 




Fig. 4. — The spotted ladybird (Meqilla maculata): a, larva; b, pupa; c, adult; 
enlarged. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

and wing-covers are a dark pink, with two black spots on the 
thorax and ten on the wing-covers. Such numbers of these 



BENEFICIAL INSECTS, PREDACEOUS AND PARASITIC 11 




Fig. 5. — The twice-stabbed lady- 
bird (Chilocorus hivulnerus). 
a, adult; h, larva; enlarged. 
(After Riley.) 



little fellows have frequently been found huddled together under 
the rubbish at the base of some tree in a last year's cornfield 
that they might be taken up by the handful without difficulty. 
Many other species feed upon plant-lice, but the above are the 
most common, and all bear a resemblance to one another, being 
generally orange or red with black spots, and of a characteristic 

round or oval form, flattened below, 
so that the legs may be drawn in 
under the wing-covers. 

Those ladybirds which feed upon 
scales are much smaller and are 
black, though sometimes spotted 
with red or orange. 

As far as known, there is no 
way in which these useful allies 
may be encouraged or increased in numbers, but it is trusted 
that the above may give such a brief view of their habits that 
fewer may be killed through ignorance concerning their true 
worth. 

Syrphus-flies 

Besides the little beetles described above there is a family 
of flies, the Syrphidce, many of whose larvae feed upon plant- 
lice. This family is a very large one, and thus the habits of its 
different members vary considerably. One of them, the drone- 
fly, so closely resembles a honey- 
bee as to be almost indistin- 
guishable from it. The larva of 
this fly {Eristalis tenax) is one 
of the common rat-tailed mag- 
gots which are found in putrid 
matter. It is thought that the 
old " bugonia " superstition of 
the ancients that bees came from 

maggots in dead animals, etc., was due to the confusion of this 
fly with honey-bee. 

In another group of the family, the adult flies of which also 
quite closely resembles bees, the larvse are parasitic in the nests 
of honey- and bumble-bees, feeding upon their larvae. 




Fig. 6. — Syrphus ribesii; enlarged. 



12 NSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

But the larvse of possibly the typical portion of the family, 
embracing the genus Syrphus and its near allies, are entirely 
predaceous upon plant-lice. Rarely can a colony of plant- 
lice be found without some of these little enemies hard after 
them. 

The adult syrphus-fiy is a very striking insect, with its dark 
green metallic thorax, and abdomen variously banded with 
yellow and black. The female fly lays her eggs upon some plant 
bearing plant-lice. The larvse which hatch from these are elongate, 
flattened maggots, about one-half an inch long, with hardly a 
trace of a head, but with four small hooks, which serve as jaws, 
projecting from the more pointed end of the body. These mag- 
gots are often of a hght-green color, and so like the color of 
the plants as to render them most difficult to recognize. The 
young larvse at once commence crawling over the plant in search 
of aphids, and as soon as they come in contact with one it 
is firmly clasped by the small booklets until the juices are sucked 
from its body. In this manner very large numbers are destroyed, 
a single maggot of the American Syrphus-fly (Syrphus americanus) 
having been observed to eat twenty-five apple plant-lice {Aphis 
pomi) in as many minutes. When the larva is ready to pupate 
it attaches itself tc a leaf, and the larval skin dries up and forms 
a case or puparium inside of which the pupa remains until it 
transforms to the adult fly. 

Though most of these larvse feed upon plant-lice upon the 
leaves, one of them, the Root-louse Syrphus-fly (Pipiza radicans)^ 




Fig. 7. — The root-louse syrphus-fly {Pipiza radicans). a. maggot; 6, puparium; 
c, fly. (After Riley.) 

lives entirely underground during that stage, and feeds upon 
the root-lice of the apple and the grape. None of this family 
is injurious, and as a large portion of them are so beneficial 



BENEFICIAL INSECTS, PREDACEOUS AND PARASITIC 13 

as frequently to destroy whole broods of plant-lice, they should 
not be disturbed in their good work if possible to avoid it. 

The Ground-beetles 

If, as you scrape away the loose chips at the base of a tree 
in your door-yard, turn over an old log in the woodland, or pick 
up a fallen fence-rail, you will scrutinize the inhabitants under 
these shelters, a number of shining black beetles varying in length 
from one fourth to 1^4, inches will usually be noticed. If the city 
reader be not so fortunate as to be famiUar with or have access 
to these hiding-places, he may find large numbers of the beetles 




Fig. 8. 



-The fiery ground-beetle {Calosovia calidum). a, beetle; b, 
c, " the searcher " {Calosoma scrutator). (After Riley.) 



larva; 



under any electric arc Ught during the warm summer evenings; 
for there they are having a sumptuous banquet upon the small 
flies and moths attracted by the glare. They are rarely seen 
at large during the day, as they are almost exclusively nocturnal 
insects, and from their habit of remaining ahiiost entirely in or 
on the ground they are usually known as " Ground-beetles." As 
might therefore be inferred, they are exceedingly valuable to the 
farmer by destroying large numbers of noxious insects which 
pass a part or all of their existence in the soil. Besides the 
glossy black forms which are most commonly seen, many are 
brilliantly marked with gold, green, purple, and iridescent tints. 

The Fiery Ground-beetle {Calosoma calidum), so called on 
account of the wing-covers being dotted with bright gold, has 



14 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



many times been of great assistance in helping to rid a corn-field 
of cutworms. The larvse of this insect are about one inch in 
length, of a dark brown color, with the skin of a hard, horny- 
texture like that of the beetle. They have strong, prominent 
jaws, and at the posterior end of the body is a forked appendage 
looking much Hke another pair of jaws. It is not only surpris- 
ing that these larvse will eat so large a number of cutworms 
as they have frequently been known to do, but that they will 
dare to attack such a formidable creature fully three or four 
times as large as themselves, but their assault is sharp and 
vigorous, and a single larva has often been seen to kill and eat 
several full-grown cutworms in a short time. Many instances 
of the good work of this beetle are on record, among which one 
by the late Professor J. A. Lintner may be cited, where he found 
/■ them eating large numbers of the corn- 
' ^ crambus — sometimes locally known as the corn 

bud-worm. Another somewhat larger beetle, 
called by Professor J. H. Comstock " the 
Searcher " {Calosoma scrutator), and in fact 
one of the largest of the family, is a brilliant 
metaUic green, bordered with a dark purplish- 
blue, and has the good quality of having a 
very particular appetite, causing it to kill large numbers of cater- 
pillars, but to eat only part of each. 

While in the earth as pupsB large numbers of the Colorado 
potato-beetles are destroyed by members of this family, and 




Fig. 9. — Lebia gran 
dis. (After Riley.) 




Fig. 10. — The murky ground-beetle (Harpalus caliginosus): adult at left; 
a, larva; b, head of same; c, mandible. (After Riley.) 

one species, Lehia grandis which is peculiar in that the wing- 
covers are somewhat abbreviated, thus leaving the tip of the 



BENEFICIAL INSECTS, PREDACEOUS AND PARASITIC 15 



abdomen exposed, has been noticed on the plants eating the 
eggs and young larvse of this old potato pest. 

Another valuable species is one called by Dr. Riley the 
Murkey Ground-beetle (Harpahis caliginosus) . Its larva is of 
considerable assistance to fruit-growers by eating large numbers 
of curculio larvse which it secures from the plums after they 
have fallen to the earth. From a glance at its formidable jaws, 
Fig. 10 h — c, it is easy to conjecture the fate of many a curculio grub. 
Thus here again are found some " bugs " that are friends and 
not foes, worthy of all the protection that can be afforded them, 
and well repaying such careful observation of their habits as may 
be bestowed upon them. 

Insect Parasites 

Though large numbers of injurious insects are annually 
destroyed by those which are purely predaceous upon them, many 
more succumb to those minute forms which live parasitically 
within them. A few 
of these parasites be- 
long to the order Dip- 
tera, or true flies, but 
most of them are classed 
in the order Hymeno- 
ptera, in which order are 
also included the saw- 
flies, ants, wasps, and 
bees. 

Of the half-dozen 
families of hymenopter- 
ous parasites one of the 
largest and most bene- 
ficial is that of the 
Ichneumon-flies. The illustrations will best show the form and 
structure of these insects, which the casual observer will hardly 
be able to distinguish from other famihes of the group. But 
it will be noticed that the fine veins of the wings vary considerably 
in the different parasites figured and it is by these that the 
entomologist is enabled to separate the different groups and 
often to identify the species at a glance. Both this and the follow- 




FiG. 11. — Maggots of Pwipla inquisitor, a 
parasitic Ichneumon-fly, feeding on a cater- 
pillar which had spun its cocoon and was 
ready to pupate. 



16 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



ing family are peculiar in having an exceedingly long ovipositor 
or egg-tube, of which they make a very good use. It is with 
this extensile tube that the female deftly punctures the skin 
of some unsuspecting caterpillar, and under it inserts her eggs. 
In a few days there hatch from these a host of young maggots 
which feed upon the juices and tissues of the caterpillar, but are 
seemingly careful to. avoid injuring any of its vital organs, for as 
soon as the caterpillar reaches its full growth it changes to a 
pupa, apparently unaffected. When the maggots have reached 
their full size each spins up a small silken cocoon inside the pupa, 
entirely filhng up its now dead shell, and instead of a beautiful 
moth appearing in the spring, a horde of small flies are seen to 
emerge from round holes in the side of the pupa, or cocoon. 

Thus laige numbers of such pests as the apple-tree tent-cater- 
pillar {Malacosoma americana), hagworms, (Thyridopteryx 
ephemeroeformis) f caterpillars of the swallow-tailed butterflies 

which feed upon parsley, car- 
rots, etc., and a host of others, 
are consumed by members of 
this family. 

Those belonging to the 
genus Ophion are partial to 
the large American silkworms 
which produce some of our 
largest and most beautiful 
moths, and difficulty is fre- 
quently experienced in rear- 
ing a desired number of moths 
on account of the large per- 
cent of cocoons parasitized. 
The species of the family 
Braconidoe are very similar to 
those of the preceding one, 
and contain some equally ben- 
FiG. 12.— The long-tailed Ophion (Ophion eficial insects, feeding as they 

maggot; ^^ xipon such pests as the cod- 
ling moth, webworms, plum- 
curculio grubs, plant-lice, etc. Some of the more common forms 
of this family belong to the genus Microgaster, and their small 




macrurum). a, aduH; 6, 
enlarged. (After Riley. ^ 



BENEFICIAL INSECTS, PREDACEOUS AND PARASITIC 17 

white cocoons may frequently be seen almost covering one of our 
large tomato- or tobacco-worms (see page 220 ) , the pupae of which 
are often known as "horn-blowers." Many mistake these cocoons 
for the eggs of the worms, and therefore destroy some of their 
best friends. Though some thus spin their cocoons on the outside 
of the host, others remain inside of the parasitized insect until the 
adult fly emerges. Thus dead plant-hce may often be found with 
a large round hole in the abdomen — the only evidence of where 
one of these parasites has emerged. The Chalcis-flies, Chalcididoe, 
which comprise another closely related family, are often exceed- 
ingly minute insects, sometimes not over one one-hundredth of 
an inch long. They are generally of a metallic black color, and 
the usual veins of the wings are almost entirely absent. Many 
of these flies are parasitic upon plant-lice, while a large number 
of their larvae live and mature in the eggs of other insects. 

Very similar to the chalcis-flies in the habits of infesting 
plant-lice and insect eggs 
are some even smaller 
insects — in fact the small- 
est known, the largest being 
rarely over one-twenty -fifth 
and the smallest only six-or- 
seven one-thousandths of an 
inch in length — with a cor- 
respondingly tremendous 
and unpronounceable name, 
known to science as the Pro- 
dotrypidoe. During the last 
half century the American 
farmer has been compelled 
to contend with an increas- 
ing number of insect pests. Fig. 13. -A plant-louse parasite (Aphidius 
^_ ^ ' afe«ap«is), showing above the parasitized 

which now and then have louse from which it has issued. (Copied 
become veritable scourges. ^^°^ '^- Smith.) 
Every now and then we hear of communities assembling for prayer 
and fasting to appease the Almighty, whose wrath has hurled a new 
insect plague against them, but such a procedure is by no means as 




18 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

common as formerly, and little reflection will show that these 
scourges are entirely due to natural causes. In fact they are very 
largely brought about by man himself. Some of these pests are due 
to the fact that in trying to subdue nature by clearing and cultivat- 
ing the land, man has deprived the insects of their natural food 
plants. They must, therefore, needs feed upon that which is sub- 
stituted by him, and as it is less abundant than the former wild 
vegetation, the number of insects and the injury they inflict are 
more apparent. 

By far the larger number of our worst pests, however, are those 
which come to us from foreign shores. Foreign insects are con- 
stantly being imported in one way or another, sometimes being 
already established pests in other lands and sometimes only be- 
coming so under their new surroundings. These are even more 
injurious than those native, for whereas many of our native birds, 
insects, and diseases constantly prey upon native insects and thus 
keep their numbers in check, the enemies of imported pests rarely 
accompany them, and they thus increase at an alarming rate and 
do enormous damage before they are attacked by the natural 
enemies of similar native pests. It is in the case of these imported 
pests that the value of parasitic and predaceous insects is most 
apparent. In an effort to make use of them to fight the gypsy 
and brown-tail moths in New England, the U. S. Bureau of Ento- 
mology has for several years been importing large numbers of the 
parasites and predaceous enemies of these pests and liberating 
them in affected regions, thus carrying on a practical experiment 
on a large scale which may show the importance of these parasites 
in combating imported pests. 

Even with our native pests, however, we have frequent exam- 
ples of the value of parasitic and predaceous enemies. Thus the 
southern grain louse, or "green bug," was soon brought under 
control by the myriads of little parasites which preyed upon it 
(see page 140), and these were artificially transported for some 
distance and liberated in large numbers. Though these efforts at 
the distribution of this parasite may be open to some question 
as to their effectiveness, other parasites have been successfully 



BENEFICIAL INSECTS, PREDACEOUS AND PARASITIC 19 

distributed, and there can be no question that before long we 
shall come better to understand how we may make use of these 
valuable allies, and some day we may be able to duplicate the 
apparent miracle by which Dame Nature sweeps away an insect 
plague in a few days with the aid of these apparently insignificant 
parasites. 



CHAPTER III 

STRUCTURE AND DEVELOPMENT OF INSECTS 

The more experience the farmer has with insect pests, the 
more he comes to realize that if he would successfully combat 
them he must have a certain amount of knowledge concerning 
their structure and growth. 

In general, the artificial means which may be effectually 
used to combat an insect pest will depend more or less upon 
the anatomical structure of the insect, while control by general 
methods of culture will depend upon a knowledge of the peculiari- 
ties of its life-history. The value of a proper understanding pf 
these important factors in insect control is therefore apparent. 



General Structure of an Insect 

The body of an insect is composed of three separate parts 
the head, thorax, and abdomen (Fig. 14), each of which is com- 
posed of several rings or segments. 
To the head are attached the 
jointed antennae, or feelers, the 
compound eyes, and the mouth- 
parts, which are described below. 
Each of the three segments of 
the thorax bears a pair of legs, 
and adult insects usually possess 
one or two pairs of wings upon 
the last two segments of the 
thorax. The abdomen is com- 

^ , , ^^ , , . , posed of nine or ten segments, 
fiiG. 14. — Honev-bee, showing the i , , , 

three principal regions of the body but bears no appendages save 
of an insect :—/i, head; </i, thorax; the ovipositor of the females of 
abd, abdomen. . . , 

certain orders. 

Harvest-mites, or " daddy-long-legs," sow-bugs, thousand- 
legged worms, and related forms are often popularly called 

20 




STRUCTURE AND DEVELOPMENT OF INSECTS 



21 



insects, but all of them can readily be distinguished from true 
insects by their possessing more than six legs, the harvest-mites 
and spiders having eight and the others ten or more. 

How Insects Grow 

With rare exceptions insects hatch from eggs laid by the 
adult females. Upon hatching they are but little larger than 
the eggs, and often bear but little resemblance to their parents. 
Thus the young caterpillar would never be recognized as the 
immature stage of the butterfly by one unfamiliar with its trans- 




^^ 





Fig. 15. — Complete metamorphosLs. The different stages of the corn ear- 
worm (Chloridea obsoleta Fab.): a, eggs on corn-silk; b, the first three 
larval stages; c, pupa from below; d, same from above; e, adult moth — 
all enlarged; 6, about twice natural size. 

formations. Grasshoppers and some other insects, however, upon 
hatching from the egg bear a marked resemblance to the adult 
form, except that they lack wings. 



22 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHAR 

Complete Metamorphosis. — When the caterpillar hatches 
from the egg it at once commences to feed and grows very 
rapidly, but before long an obstacle to further growth arises. 
Unlike higher animals, insects possess no internal skeleton or 
framework for the organs of the body, but the outer skin becomes 
hardened and to it the muscles and ligaments are attached. This 
hardening of the skin is best seen in the horny wing-covers of the 
beetles, and is due to the secretion of a hard substance called 
chitin. This chitin is secreted by all parts of the skin in greater 
or less degree, and thus forms a sort of shell for the whole body. 
Though this hardening is not so apparent in larvae as in adult 
insects, it always occurs and it is for this reason that when the 
young caterpillar has made a certain growth it is forced to shed its 
skin, which refuses to expand further, in order to develop more 
fully. Thus the skins of insects are shed several times (see Fig. 
15, h), — usually five or six, but sometimes as many as twenty, this 
process being known as molting. During its life as a caterpillar, 
which is called the larval stage, and during which it is called a 
larva, it is an elongate, worm-like creature, with six short, 
jointed legs on the three thoracic segments, a pair of fleshy false 
legs or pro-legs on the last abdominal segment, and probably 
several pairs of pro-legs between these and the true legs. No 
traces of wings can be seen, but the body is often covered with 
hairs, spines, or warty tubercles. 

With the next molt the insect changes in appearance most 
radically, becoming a pupa, or chrysalis, as this stage is termed 
for butterflies. During the pupal stage the insect remains 
dormant either in a small cell slightly under the surface of the 
earth, or in a silken cocoon spun by the caterpillar, or merely 
attached to the food-plant by a strand of silk or the cast larval 
skin. In many of the Diptera, — the order including flies, mos- 
quitoes, gnats, etc., — however, the last larval skin is not shed, 
but hardens and forms a case — called a puparium — within which 
the pupal stage is passed. 

The typical pupa (Fig. 15, c, d) of a butterfly or moth re- 
sembles neither the adult insect nor the larva, is of a more or 
less oval shape, with the wings and antennae tightly folded at 
the sides, the legs drawn up snugly together under them, and the 
head and mouth-parts bent upon the breast, or sternum, though 



STRUCTURE AND DEVELOPMENT OF INSECTS 



23 



not all of these parts are alvA^ays recognizable, the legs and mouth- 
parts being sometimes lacking. Gradually the adult insect 
develops, and at last the pupal skin is broken open and the airy 




Fig. 16. — Incomplete metamorphosis of a bug (Brachymena ^-pustulata): 
a, eggs; h, adult bug; c, different stages of young bugs or nymphs. 

butterfly emerges to enjoy a short life and perpetuate the species. 
Such a series of transformations is that commonly found among 
butterflies and moths (Lepidoptera) , beetles (Coleoptera), flies 
(Diptera), and bees (Hymenoptera) , and is known as a complete 
metamorphosis. All of these insects normally pass through 
four stages, egg, larva, pupa, and adult. 

Incomplete Metamorphosis. — In contrast to this mode of 
development is that of the grasshoppers (Orthoptera) , bugs 
(Hemiptera), and some other insects. As already stated, these 
are much like the adult upon emerging from the egg. With 



24 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



each molt they become larger and small wing-like pads gradually 
appear on the sides of the thorax. There is no dormant or pupal 
stage, the adult insect differing from the previous stages in hav- 
ing fully developed wings, being larger, and often by an accompany- 
ing change of markings. The immature stages of such insects 
are called nymphs, and this development an incomplete meta- 
morphosis, hsiY'mghut three stages, egg, nymph, and adult (Fig. 16). 
The time occupied by the complete life-cj^cle of an insect 
varies from a week or ten days for the plant-lice to thirteen or 
seventeen years for some cicadas, and is entirely dependent 
upon the habit of the species and the climate. A correct knowl- 
edge of the exact time and conditions under which the trans- 
formations occur for each individual insect pest is therefore often 
most essential when seeking means for its control. 

How Insects Feed 

The material to be used in combating a given insect is largely 

dependent upon the 
structure of its mouth- 
parts. Much Paris 
green is wasted upon 
insects unable to eat it 
and which it will, there- 
fore, never kill. 

Insects may be 
roughly divided into 
two classes, those which 
bite and those which 
suck their food. Among 
the former are the 
beetles, grasshoppers, 
the larvae of butterflies 

Fig. 17. — Front-view face of grasshopper (Sc/iiz^o- and moths, and the 
cerca americana): mil., antenna; oc, ocellus; i„„„.„ ^r „„^, a- j 

ey., eye; cl, clypeus; Ihr., labrum, or upper ^'^^^^ ^^ saw-nies, ana 
lip; nix.p., maxillary palpus; lab.p., labial pal- among the latter are 

SndiriiD^''^'''''^''^^''^ '"'''''"''' ^"''■'^^^'''"'''''' butterflies, flies, bees, 

and bugs, while the 

larva? of most flies and bees do not possess mouth-parts homo- 
logous with those of the above. 




STRUCTURE AND DEVELOPMENT OF INSECTS 



25 



Biting Mouth-parts. — Mouth-parts typical of those of biting 
insects are easily seen in the grasshopper (Figs. 17 and 18). In 
brief, they consist of an upper and a lower lip, between which 
are two pairs of jaws which work transversely. The upper pair 
of jaws, or mandihles, are stout, short, and horny, usually sharp- 
ened at the tip, slightly serrated at the margins, and flattened at 
the base. The lower pair of jaws, or maxiUce are longer, not so 
strong, and to each of them is attached an accessory lobe, and a 
jointed style called a palpus or feeler. At each side of the lower 
lip is another palpus, these palpi bearing sensory organs. 

Sucking Mouth-parts. — In the sucking insects these mouth- 
parts are prolonged into a tube through which the juices of the 
food plant — or animal — are sucked. In the plant-lice and other 





Fig. 18. — A, mouth-parts 
of grasshopper sep- 
arated to show posi- 
tion and relation; B, 
mouth-parts dissected; 
Ibr., labrum; md., man- 
dible; hyp., hypopha- 
rynx or tongue; mx.p., 
maxillary palpus; lb p , 
labial palpus; lab., lab- 
ium; max., maxillse. 

bugs the lower lip is elongated so that it forms a tube, and the 
maxillae and mandibles consist ot long hair-like bristles, or seta?, 
enclosed within this tube (Fig. 20). The tip of this beak is rested 
upon the surface of a leaf into which the setae are thrust, lacerat- 
ing the tissue, and by a pumping process of the mouth the 
juices are sucked up through the beak. The structure of the 
mouth-parts of the various orders of sucking insects varies con- 
siderably, but all agree in that they suck up the food in a liquid 
state. Any application ot a poisonous spray to the surface of 
foliage will be of no avail against them,* though sure death to 

- Liquid poisoned baits, used for house-flies, adults of onion-maggots, etc., 
form an exception to this rule. 



26 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



most biting insects which chew the leaves. Sucking insects must 
therefore be killed by other means. 

How Insects Breathe 

Along the side of a caterpillar or larva, on one thoracic seg- 
ment and on each abdominal seg- 
ment except the last, is a small oval 
spot, in the centre of which is a slit 
closed by two membranous lips. 
These apertures are called spiracles 
or stigmata (Fig. 21 sp.), and are 
the openings of the respiratory sys- 
tem. Similar openings are to be 
found in all insects, though not so 
easily seen in the adults. Connect- 
ing these spiracles is a pair of tubes 
on each side of the body, through- 
out its length, from which branch off 
smaller tubes to all of its organs 
and tissues. Fresh air is inhaled 
to all parts of the body through 
these tubes (Fig. 21, tr). 

The blood of insects does not 
circulate through any system of tubes 
as it does in the higher animals. 
Along the middle of the back, 
above the alimentary canal, is a 
long tube popularly called the heart 
(Fig. 23, d. v.). This heart is com- 
posed of a number of chambers, 
oach of which is furnished with 
Fig. 19.-Cicada, showing mouth- side valves for admitting blood from 
parts of a bug, a sucking insect; the bodv-cavity. Theblood coming 

ris.?um It G.fT^^S's b°e: I"*" ^e heart from the body-eavity 

tween forelegs; b, head removed: is propelled forward toward the 

dibri.«;'«itm"iilTa'y S; head, where it again flows into the 

lab., labium. body-cavity. Thus various currents 

of blood are maintained throughout the body, but other than 

the heart there is no system of blood-vessels, the blood merely 

fillmg the body-cavity around and through the various organs and 




STRUCTURE AND DEVELOPMENT OF INSECTS 



27 



tissues. Constantly flowing around tne respiratory tubes or 
tracheae, the blood is quickly and thoroughly purified, though the 





Fig. 20. — Mouth-parts of a plant- 
louse: a, the jointed beak; 6, the 
lancets, much enlarged; c, antenna; 
d, foot. (After J. B. Smith.) 



Fig. 21. — Diagram of tracheal 
or breathing system of an 
insect: sp., spiracles; tr., 
trachea. (After Kolbe.) 



exact manner in which this is done is not definitely known. The 
respiratory system has absolutely no connection with the mouth 
or pharynx (Fig. 23, ph), as have the lungs of the higher animals, 




Fig. 22. — Ideal section through an insect: a, ahmentary canal; h, heart; 
n, nerve cord; s, spiracle; t, tracheal tubes; I, legs; w, wings. (From 
Riverside Natural History.) 



28 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



and if an insect is to be suffocated, it must be done by closing the 
spiracles. It is in this way that tobacco-dust, lime, pyrethrum, 
and similar insecticides kill sucking insects, by penetrating the 
spiracles and choking the tracheal system. Whale-oil soap, 

— 7^ 



~m 



'dr\r 




Fig. 23. — Internal anatomy of silk-worm, from photo of Azoux Model: 
A, upper or dorsal bodywall seen from within; S, the back of the silk- 
worm removed, showing alimentary canal; C, alimentary canal removed, 
showing nervous system and tracheal trunks; tr., trachea; d.v., dorsal 
vessel or heart; p/i., pharynx of mouth; s?i., supra-oesophageal ganglion; 
sp.sp., spiracles or breathing pores; n., nerve cord; tr.t., tracheal trunk; 
oes., oesophagus or throat; cr., crop; s.g., silk gland; pro., proventriculus; 
St., stomach; h.i., hind intestine. 

kerosene emulsion, and the other "contact" insecticides, or "irri- 
tants," also stop up the spiracles and thus cause death, but they 
may act as "irritants," penetrating the skin and thus killing the 
insect. When insects are killed by means of a gas such as carbon 
bisulfide or hydrocyanic acid gas, they are asphyxiated by a substi- 
tution of these gases for air, the same as are the higher animals. 

Though arsenical poisons are generally used as sprays for biting 
insects, soft-bodied caterpillars and similar larvae are often killed 
by the use of contact insecticides, which affect them the same as 
sucking insects. 

The reader will observe that, almost without exception, the 
remedies advised for different insect pests in the following pages 
are determined by some peculiarity, either of structure or develop- 
ment, of the insect to be combated. 



CHAPTER IV 

FARM METHODS FOR THE CONTROL OF INSECTS 

The old adage "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of 
cure," is never more true than in the control of insect pests, for in 
almost all cases their successful control is by prevention before the 
injury has become acute, rather than by destruction after the 
injury is noticeable. Even insecticides must be applied so that 
they will kill the insect before it has done serious damage, for after 
damage is apparent it is too late to prevent the injury, so that 
the use of insecticides for the protection of crops must be of a pre- 
ventive nature. In the control of insects affecting the staple 
crops which are grown over immense areas with a small profit per 
acre, it is evidently impracticable to use insecticides and mechani- 
cal'methods which are used in the orchard and garden. For the 
control of staple crop insects we are compelled to rely largely on 
general methods of farm management, which may be carried out 
in connection with the farm operations at small cost, and which 
will fatally interfere with the development of the insect to be con- 
trolled. To do this intelligently involves an understanding of 
the life-history of the insect, revealing the time at which it is most 
vulnerable and the reason for the method of control advised. The 
importance of such a knowledge of the life-histories and habits of 
insects to be controlled by farm methods will become apparent 
in the following chapters. 

Though the insects affecting staple crops are more largely con- 
trolled by farm methods, those of the garden and orchard may be 
much reduced by the intelligent application of the same princi- 
ples, and he who adapts his methods so as to prevent insect attack 
will be much more successful than one who depends upon artificial 
means for their destruction. 

Looking Ahead. — In planning the management of their land 
and crops for the coming season, few farmers consider the effect 

29 



30 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

which any given procedure will have upon the injurious insects with 
which they may have to contend. A field which has for several 
years been in wheat, corn, or tobacco, may be sown with some 
other crop for the sake of soil improvement, but how often is it 
considered necessary to rotate crops to avoid insect pests? In 
most cases they are left out of consideration until a crop has been 
seriously injured and the necessity for a change of methods thus 
impressed on the owner. 

Particularly while crops are young they should be frequently 
inspected and examined for any evidence of the pests which com- 
monly affect them. Be prepared to attack any pests which 
may be found upon their first appearance, for many of the 
most destructive insects increase with amazing rapidity, and 
when they have become abundant it is too late to prevent the 
damage. 

Crop Rotation. — One of the most important factors in insect 
control is the rotation of crops in such a manner that the same 
crop shall not be grown continuously on the land. In many 
cases a yearly rotation will be advantageous, while a frequent 
rotation will always be found beneficial. Many insects feed on 
one crop only. It is evident, therefore, that if they hibernate in 
or near the field which it occupied and it is then planted to the 
same crop the next year, they will be furnished food for their 
increase, while if the field be planted in a crop not attacked by 
the insects peculiar to the previous crop they will have to migrate 
from it, with probably a very considerable mortality as a conse- 
quence, for they will radiate in all directions and many will die 
before finding food, while many more will have been destroyed 
in the preparation of the old field for the new crop. 

The western corn root-worm may be entirely controlled by a 
rotation so that corn is never grown two successive years on the 
same land, for the larvae feed only on the roots of corn, and when 
it is followed by a small grain, grass, or clover, they are starved 
out. Injury by the Hessian fly to wheat is also very materially 
reduced where a frequent rotation is practised, as is that of the 
chinch-bug on corn. 

Care should be exercised to arrange a rotation in which crops 
nearly related botanically do not follow each other, for usually 
the same insects attack them. Thus white grubs, cutworms, 



FARM METHODS FOR THE CONTROL OF INSECTS 31 

and wireworms live normally in grass land, and where it has not 
been plowed for several years they often become exceedingly 
abundant. If the sod be then turned under and the land planted 
to corn these insects will attack the corn, and as there are rela- 
tively few plants to the number of insects which were feeding 
upon the grass, the injury will usually be serious. To avoid 
this, sod land should be planted in a small grain, buckwheat, 
potatoes, or some crop not affected by these pests. Similarly, 
the insects which affect cabbage usually feed on all the cole crops, 
and turnips, radishes, etc., following cabbage will be liable to 
injury by the same pests. Clovers, cowpeas, and other leguminous 
crops become of importance in rotation in this connection, as 
they are not usually attacked by the insects affecting other crops, 
and of course are widely used in every good rotation for the pur- 
pose of storing nitrogen in the soil through their root tubercles. 

Time of Planting. — Planting crops so that they may avoid 
the greatest abundance of their worst insect enemies is often the 
best method for their protection. Late-sown wheat is usually 
exempt from the attack of the Hessian-fly (see page 119) 
and late-planted corn is much less affected by the stalk-borer 
(see page 82) than that planted earlier. On the other hand 
early planting of early-maturing varieties often enables the crop 
to mature before its pests become most abundant. Thus early 
planting and early varieties are of the greatest importance in 
preventing injury by the cotton boll weevil, the cotton boll- 
worm and corn ear-worm, and early varieties of peas escape the 
injury of the pea apliis. 

Weeds. — Many insects feed upon some common weed in one 
stage while in another stage they are injurious to a cultivated 
crop. Thus the flea-beetles feed upon the roots of solanaceous 
weeds during the larval stage, while the adults attack all sorts of 
garden crops. In many cases caterpillars, such as the salt marsh 
caterpillar, army worms, the white-lined sphinx moth, and 
grasshoppers multiply upon weeds growing in neglected fields 
until they overflow and destroy crops. Many insects feed on 
weeds during the early part of the season or after the crop which 
they injure is harvested, so that the destruction of these weeds 
may often considerably shorten their breeding season or increase 
their mortality. Thus the corn root-aphis lives on the roots 




Fig. 24. — Above, a poorly kept roadside with rail fence overgrown with brambles, 
thus affording protection for large numbers of destructive insects during 
winter. Below, a well kept roadside, offering the least protection possible for 
destructive insects. (After Webster, U. S. Dept. Agr.). 

32 



FARM METHODS FOR THE CONTROL OF INSECTS 33 

of smartweed and other weeds and grasses until corn is available, 
and cutworms feed on whatever vegetation is found before a 
crop is planted. In this connection "volunteer" plants should 
be classed as weeds, as they frequently furnish food for insects 
in the same way. Thus the cotton boll weevil feeds on volunteer 
cotton in early spring and the Hessian-fly on volunteer wheat 
in late summer and early fall. Such useless trees as wild cherry 
and seedling apple trees might also be considered as weeds, as they 
harbor many of the insect pests of our orchards and should be 
destroyed as far as possible. 

Fertilization and Culture. — Although there is evidence that 
under some conditions, kainit, lime and nitrate of soda may 
have some direct effect on insects, it is probable that their chief 
importance is so to stimulate the plant that it will not be subject 
to insect attack or will grow in spite of some injury. It is well 
known that plants which have been weakened from any cause 
whatsoever are much more subject to the attacks of insects and 
diseases, and it is therefore obvious that plants which have had a 
vigorous growth and which will mature rapidly will much better 
withstand insect attack. Thorough preparation of the soil 
before planting, liberal fertilization, and thorough culture are 
most important in growing a crop in spite of its insect enemies. 
In many cases liberal fertilization and culture will mature a good 
crop where under poorer care it would have succumbed to insect 
injury. In general, land covered with barnyard manure presents 
more favorable conditions for the hibernation of insects than that 
fertilized with mineral fertilizers, but unless this is very appreciably 
the case, the manure will usually be preferred when it is available. 

Clean Farming. — After a crop has been harvested there is 
usually some portion of the plant which is allowed to remain 
on the land. In this refuse the insects peculiar to the crop often 
feed and multiply until killing frost and then hibernate over 
winter, ensuring injury to similar crops on the same land the 
next year. The wheat joint worm and the corn stalk -borer 
both winter in the stubble of those crops, and the chinch-bug 
commonly hibernates in the butts of corn stalks. All of these 
may be largely controlled by burning the stubble. Possibly 
the most important means of control of the cotton boll weevil 
is the destruction of the stalks in the fall as soon as the cotton 



34 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



can be picked, thus preventing the weevils feeding and starving 
them out before they are ready to hibernate, and removing the 
shelter for hibernation. For this reason all the remnants of a crop 
such as stubble, vines, leaves, or stumps, as may be, should be 
removed from the field as soon after it is harvested as possible. 
Many insects hibernate in such rubbish and this fact may some- 
times be utilized by thoroughly cleaning a field and leaving one or 
two piles of rubbish in which many of the insects will assemble 




Fig. 25. — A field of cabbage stumps in midwinter, affording ideal condi- 
tions for the hibernation of cabbage pests. 

for hibernation, and which may then be burned or otherwise 
destroyed. Many cabbage insects hibernate under the old stumps 
and leaves and will congregate in piles of them. Premises upon 
which the fence rows are kept free from weeds and grass and the 
fields are cleaned up and plowed as soon as possible after a crop is 
removed, usually suffer much less from insect pests than those of 
more easy-going neighbors. 

Burning. — Cleaning up of stubble and of wild vegetation 
which furnishes food and shelter for insects may often be accom- 



FARM METHODS FOR THE CONTROL OF INSECTS 35 

plished by burning. The burning over of grass land aids greatly 
in the control of army worms, chinch-bugs, grasshoppers and 
plant-lice, while the burning of the stubble will largely control 
the wheat jointworm. Strawberry beds are sometimes burned 
over in early spring to destroy the eggs of the root-louse, and 
aphids on small grains may sometimes be killed out on small 
areas by covering with straw and burning while the plants are 
small. 

Plowing. — Deep plowing and thorough harrowing are the most 
effective means of ridding the soil of many pests of staple crops. 

Late Fall Plowing. — Where the succession of crops permits, 
plowing in the late fall is most advantageous, as it destroys the 
insects while hibernating, although for some insects early fall 
plowing and thorough harrowing during the fall are preferable. 
Where plowing is not possible, thorough disking is often used 
for the same purpose, as on alfalfa. As different insects pass the 
winter in different stages this method does not affect all alike. 
Some will be destroyed by having the cells into which they have 
gone to pass the winter broken up, and being unable to construct 
new cells they will be subjected to undue freezing and thawing 
and excessive moisture, and will thus be killed by the weather. 
Cutworms and the corn stalk-borer pass the winter in the soil 
as larvae; the cotton bollworm or corn ear-worm hibernates 
in the pupal stage; while May beetles and click beetles hibernate 
as newly transformed beetles; but all of them will be similarly 
affected by the breaking up of their winter cells, which is the 
most effective manner of combating them. 

Other insects lay their eggs in the ground in the fall and these 
may be buried too deep for the young to emerge, or larvae or pupae 
which normally remain near the surface may be turned under so 
deeply as to destroy them. Thus grasshopper eggs are laid in 
the fall just beneath the surface, and by plowing in late fall or 
early spring they may be turned under so that but few are able to 
emerge, which is the best means of combating them. The apple 
maggot hibernates in the pupal stage just beneath the surface of 
the soil, and by deep plowing in early spring the puparia may be 
buried too deeply for the flies to emerge. 

Young grasshoppers are often destroyed after they hatch by 
plowing deep furrows, starting at the outside of the field and plow- 



36 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

ing in a square, thus forcing them to the centre and catching large 
numbers of them in the furrows. 

Early plowing and thorough harrowing in the spring are of 
value against cutworms by keeping the ground fallow and thus 
starving them out before a crop is planted. The same method 
may be used against other pests with similar habits. 

Thorough cultivation in the summer has been found to be of 
value against many insects, affecting them differently according to 
their habits. Many which pupate in the soil during the summer 
are destroyed while making their pupal cells, or these cells are 
broken and they are subjected to abnormal moisture and tem- 
perature conditions and are thus killed. This has been shown to be 
the case with the cotton bollworm or corn ear-worm, and is true 
of the plum curculio, against which thorough cultivation has 
proved to be one of the most effective means of control in apple 
orchards. Thorough cultivation is also of importance in breaking 
up the nests of ants which care for such aphids as the corn root- 
aphis. Summer fallowing is used to starve out some pests; for 
example, the clover root-borer may be eradicated by plowing up 
infested clover immediately after it is cut and exposing the roots 
to the sun and wind which will soon dry them out and thus destroy 
the food of the larvae. 

Trap Crops. — Trap crops are those which are planted as a bait 
or lure to attract the early insects so that they may be destroyed 
upon them before the crop to be protected is available. Doubt- 
less the reason that trap crops are not more frequently used by the 
farmer is because their successful use requires more or less of a 
knowledge of the life history and habits of the pest to be fought. 
But that is easily acquired and will make the fight against them 
more interesting and successful. 

South of Mason and Dixon's line the harlequin cabbage 
bug frequently becomes the most serious pest of cabbage and 
related plants. When a cabbage patch has become well infested 
it is an exceedingly difficult matter to prevent injury, for the adult 
bugs cannot be killed by insecticides which will not injure the 
plant. If, however, a crop of kale be planted the previous fall 
the bugs which hibernate over winter will attack it in the spring, 
and may then be killed by spraying them with pure kerosene, and 
the danger to the cabbage crop be thus largely averted. 



FARM METHODS FOR THE CONTROL OF INSECTS 37 

A few rows of wheat are often planted early in the fall as a trap 
for the Hessian-fiy, and as soon as the eggs are deposited they are 
plowed under deeply and the later planting thus at least partly 
protected. 

One of the most successful examples of averting injury by a 
trap crop is the use of corn to lure the cotton bollworm and thus 
prevent its injury to cotton. Corn is the favorite food plant of 
this pest, which prefers to deposit its eggs on the silk and tassels. 
By planting a few strips of late-maturing corn through the cotton 
field, they will come into silk about the time the brood of moths 
which normall}^ deposit their eggs on cotton are flying and they 
will lay them on the corn in preference, which should then be cut 
and fed to stock. In this way by planting strips composed of sev- 
eral rows planted at successive dates, the cotton may be almost 
entirely protected. Possibly a modification of this method may 
be applied for the protection of tomatoes or tobacco, though these 
crops have never been thus protected from this insect to our 
knowledge. 

Radishes are sometimes used as a trap crop for the root-mag- 
gots which affect the roots of cabbages and onions. The same 
principle is sometimes used in combating forest insects by gird- 
ling a tree upon which certain kinds of forest pests will concentrate, 
and then burning the tree. 

These examples will suffice to show that very many of the most 
important insect pests may be largely controlled by simply adapt- 
ing the general methods of farm management so as to avoid or 
prevent injury by them. They indicate the importance of a 
knowledge of the life history of any insect which is to be combated, 
knowing which, some of the above or similar methods will often 
suggest themselves as applicable. Such a control of insect life 
through the practical use of natural agencies epitomizes the scien- 
tific method in the art of agriculture; i. e., the most practical and 
effective and yet simple methods based upon exact knowledge.* 

The Use of Light-Traps. — The destruction of insects by at- 
tracting them to lights at night has always attracted attention. 
Many such devices have been tried and several are now on the 

* See F. M. Webster, Farm Practice in the Control of Field Crop Insects, 
Yearbook U. S. Dept. Agr., 1905, p. 465, and Some Things that the Grower 
of Cereal and Forage Crops Should Know about Insects, Yearbook U. S. 
Dept. Agr., 1908, page 367. 



38 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

market. Unfortunately, many of the most destructive insects 
are not attracted to lights. The codling moth and corn earworm, 
for instance, are rarely seen at the lights. In some cases where 
injurious forms are flying to the lights heely, for instance, when 
June-beetles are particularly abundant, they may be trapped by 
this method with some resulting benefit. As a rule, however, 
not enough individuals will be killed to make any noticeable 
difference in the injury to the crops attacked and while some in- 
jurious forms are being killed many beneficial ones will also be 
destroyed. The method is not, therefore, commonly recom- 
mended as a practical means for insect control. 

Mechanical Means for the Collection of Insects. — Some benefit 
is realized from the collection of insects by mechanical means. 
Of these the most simple is hand-picking. This is practical on a 
small scale and is used for the control of tomato and tobacco 
horn-worms and many other insects, being used even for the con- 
trol of the Colorado potato beetle in small fields. Grasshoppers 
are collected by the use of hopperdozers as described in the dis- 
cussion of those insects. Leaf hoppers are collected sometimes 
with machines of similar construction but adapted for use with 
row crops. Leafhoppers and flea-beetles are collected with some 
success by the use of shields covered with sticky material and 
carried along the rows of plants attached in such position that 
insects disturbed will be caught on the sticky material when they 
hop or fly from the plants. FKes are trapped in large numbers 
and trapping is one of the best means of control for these insects. 
Mechanical means of collecting and killing insects are generally 
less satisfactory than the use of spraj^s when the latter are avail- 
able for the control of the insects but serve a useful purpose for 
some forms which can not readily be controlled by spraying. 



CHAPTER V 

INSECTICIDES 

Mateeials used for the destruction of insects are commonly 
called insecticides, and are roughly divisible into four classes: 

1. Poisons, which kill by being eaten and are usually composed 
of various forms of arsenic and are therefore often called arseni- 
cals. They are frequently called the stomach poisons. 

2. Contact insecticides, which kill by either clogging up the 
spiracles, the openings of the respiratory system, or by entering 
the trachea, and thus causing suffocation, or by their corrosive 
action on the skin. 

3. Repellants, which deter the insect from attacking the plant 
or animal to which they are applied. 

4. Gases, which are used for fumigating buildings, stored prod- 
ucts and greenhouses where other means are not practicable. 

1. Poisons 

Poisons are applied to the food of the insect and must be eaten 
by it to be effective. It is evident, therefore, that they are only 
effective against biting (mandibulate) insects, or for those which 
lap up their food from the surface, and that they are of no avail 
against the true sucking insects, such as the true bugs, which suck 
the juices from beneath the surface of the plant. Poisons are not 
always, however, the most effective means of combating biting 
insects, which are sometimes more effectively controlled by con- 
tact insecticides or other means. 

Nearly all of the stomach poisons are derivatives of arsenic 
and are therefore termed arsenicals. As they are dangerous to 
human life they should be kept well labeled, locked up when not 
in use, and vessels in which they have been used should be care- 
fully cleaned. 

1. Paris green is a green crystalline powder composed of the 
aceto-arsenite of copper. When properly made it should contain 

39 



40 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

at least 50 per cent arsenic oxid (AS2O5), and there should be as 
little water-soluble arsenic as possible, for the water-soluble arsenic 
is the cause of the burning of foliage which often results from the 
use of Paris green. Various state laws require that there be not 
over 3| per cent soluble arsenic, but even this amount is often 
injurious to tender foliage. Paris green is a rather coarse powder 
and settles readily in water, and is readily washed off by drenching 
rains. It costs from 35 to 50 cents per pound. It is usually used 
at a rate of from 3 to 8 ounces to a 50-gallon barrel of water; 5 
ounces per barrel is satisfactory for most purposes. In mixing, 
first stir up in a small vessel with a little water into a paste, which 
will mix more readily. Add an equal weight of quicklime, or 
slightly more will do no harm, which will take up any soluble 
arsenic. 

2. London purple is a waste product in the manufacture of 
aniline dyes, and is principally arsenic and lime. It is quite 
variable in composition and usually contains a much higher, 
and quite variable, amount of soluble arsenic, so that it is apt to 
scald the foliage unless thoroughly mixed with fresh stone lime. 
For this reason it is now used only for rough work, such as poison- 
ing grasshoppers, making poisoned bran mash, etc., and is not 
to be recommended for general use on fruit trees and garden 
crops. It usually costs 10 or 12 cents a pound, and is used in 
the same proportions and in the same way as Paris green. 

3. Arsenate of lead is sold in the form of a white paste con- 
taining about 50 per cent water and also as a dry white powder. 
Standards of purity for this material require that the paste con- 
tain not more than 50 per cent water and not more than f per 
cent water-soluble arsenic oxide, while there must be not less 
than 12| per cent total arsenic oxide. The dry powder will lack 
the water and contain a correspondingly larger percentage of 
other ingredients. Since this material contains a relatively small 
amount of soluble arsenic it may be used at a greater strength than 
the other arsenicals without injuring foliage of plants which are 
susceptible to injury from the other arsenicals. From one to eight 
pounds, paste form, are used to the 50 gallon barrel of water, 2 or 
3 pounds being most commonly recommended for the majority of 
the pests of orchard and garden. Arsenate of lead remains in 
suspension well, much better than Paris green, and is very ad- 



INSECTICIDES 41 

hesive, remaining on foliage for several weeks. It is made from 
arsenate of soda and acetate of lead and may readily be prepared 
by the user. This is not recommended on account of the vari- 
ability in the purity of the constituent chemicals and the incon- 
siderable saving effected by the home preparation. 

Commercial arsenate of lead may be purchased at prices 
ranging from 10 to 30 cents per pound for the paste and from 25 
to 50 cents for the powder. 

Powdered arsenate of lead was prepared first rather for use as 
a dust than for spraying purposes. Perfection of the process of 
manufacture of the dust has given a product that is as cheap and 
in every way as satisfactory as the paste. For this reason users 
axoimore and more coming to prefer the powder. It mixes more 
readily with water, remains in suspension just as well and, being 
of only one-half the weight of the paste, effects a considerable 
saving in transportation. 

The powder also eliminates one source of loss to which the 
paste is liable, that is, drying out. Paste arsenate of lead that 
has dried is practically wasted as it is almost impossible to get it 
thoroughly mixed with water. The dust will keep indefinitely 
if it is stored in a dry place. Arsenate of lead in the dry form is 
the only arsenical used to any extent in orchard dusting. 

It is well for the student to remember that spraying formulas 
calling for arsenate of lead usually mean the arsenate in paste form 
if the powder is not definitely specified. This is because the 
paste was first used and formulas were established on that basis. 

Arsenate of lead is the most valuable and widely used of all 
the insecticides used as stomach poisons, having long since dis- 
placed Paris green which was formerly the leading arsenical. 

4. Ar senile of lead is a compound very similar to the arsenate 
but less effective and contains more soluble arsenic and so is more 
likely to burn foliage. It is made from sodium arsenite and a 
lead compound but is rarely used and not to be recommended. 

5. Arsenite- of lime is a home-made arsenical, very much cheaper 
than those previously mentioned, which gives very satisfactory 
results for certain purposes. It is not as adhesive as arsenate 
of lead, and as it sometimes burns foliage has been largely dis- 
carded for orchard spraying. It is, however, very satisfactory 
for potatoes and other low-growing crops, especially when added 



42 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

to bordeaux mixture, which sticks it to the foHage, and it may be 
used to good advantage for fighting grasshoppers and leaf-eating 
caterpillars when it is desired to poison considerable areas of 
weeds or waste grass. The so-called Kedzie formula (See Sodium 
arsenite below) is the most satisfactory, as the soda hastens 
the complete combination of the arsenic, and the resulting 
solution is in a clear liquid form which can be readily measured.* 
6. Arsenate of calcium, sometimes called arsenate of lime, is 
an insecticide of more recent application and is perhaps the best 
substitute for arsenate of lead. It has several points in its favor 
over the lead compound, being cheaper under normal conditions, 
and possessing greater killing power, pound for pound, since a 
pound of the calcium arsenate has a greater percentage of arsenic 
than does a pound of lead arsenate. It is somewhat more liable 
to scorch foliage than is the lead arsenate and it is recommended 
that it be always used with some stone lime added. It is not a 
safe material, according to latest reports, to use on peach foliage. 
Calcium arsenate is marketed as a paste and also in the dust form. 
It has been used as a substitute for lead arsenate in dusting work 
It may be prepared at home but the same objections are to be 
raised as against the home manufacture of lead arsenate. The 
formula and directions follow: 

Stone lime, best grade 2 lbs. 

Sodium arsenate, fused (65% AsaOs) 4 lbs. 

Water 1 gallon. 

Dissolve the sodium arsenate in a little hot water. Place the 
stone lime in a wooden tub or bucket and add just enough water 
to start slaking. Then add the dissolved sodium arsenate. Stir 
constantly and add small amounts of water from time to time 
until the slaking has ceased. Allow the solids to settle and pour 
off the clear Hquid above. The resulting paste is calcium arsenate 
and may be used at from one to three pounds per barrel of water. 
Impurities in the materials used may reduce the kilHng power of 

* Arsenite of lime is often made by boiling 1 pound of lime with 2 pounds 
of white arsenic in 1 gallon of water for thirty to forty-five minutes. This 
results in a paste of arsenite of lime, which settles in the solution. One quart 
of this mixture is used per barrel of water or Bordeaux mixture, but unless 
the stock solution is always stirred equally well, the amount of poison in a 
quart will be quite variable, with varying effectiveness; hence the clear solu- 
tion of arsenite of soda as in the Kedzie formula is preferable. 



INSECTICIDES 43 

the material or increase the danger of burning foHage so that it is 
generally wiser to use the commercial product. 

7. Arsenite of zinc is another material which is occasionally 
used as a substitute for lead arsenate. It comes in the commercial 
form as a rather light powder. It has a tendency to burn foliage 
but has good killing qualities. It may be used, if conditions de- 
mand, with a fair degree of safety by combining it with bordeaux 
mixture or with lime. It should not be used at more than half 
the strength recommended for arsenate of lead. 

8. White arsenic is the basis for all the stomach poisons, at 
least indirectly. It is cheap and a violent poison to insects but 
on account of its complete solubility is not available as a spray 
material. It is of value for use in poisoned baits and as a basis 
for the preparation of other materials. 

9. Sodium arsenite is a cheap and effective insecticide, avail- 
able for some uses. It is generally prepared by the user, the com- 
mon Kedzie formula following: 

White arsenic 1 lb. 

Sal soda 2 lbs. 

Water 1 gal. 

Mix the arsenic into a paste with a little water and dissolve 
the sal soda in the remaining water. Add the arsenic paste to the 
soda solution and boil until the arsenic is completely dissolved. 
Add water to make a full gallon and use at the rate of one quart to 
fifty gallons of bordeaux mixture, being careful to see that the 
bordeaux has an excess of lime. This material is not widely 
used although in some regions it is the favorite spray for potatoes. 

10. Hellebore. — The powdered roots of the white hellebore are 
often used as an insecticide in place of arsenicals, especially for 
currant worms, rose slugs, and similar saw-fly larva3 and for insects 
affecting crops soon to be eaten, as the hellebore is much less 
poisonous to man and animals than arsenicals. It may be applied 
dry, diluted with from 5 to 10 parts of flour, or as a spray, 1 ounce 
to a gallon of water. It is too expensive to use except for a few 
plants in the yard or garden, and like pyrethrum, deteriorates 
with age and if exposed to the air. 

Harmlessness of Arsenicals when Pr^operly Applied. — The ques- 
tion is frequently asked whether it is safe to apply arsenicals to 
vegetables and fruits to be used as food. Where sprayed or dusted 



44 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

as directed the amount of arsenic which would be deposited on 
the plant would not be sufficient to cause any injury, and Professor 
C. P. Gillette has shown that twenty-eight cabbages dusted in the 
ordinary way would have to be eaten at one meal in order to pro- 
duce poisonous effects. Occasionally growers dust cabbage with 
an unreasonable amount of poison, and very rarely instances of 
poisoning are recorded, but there is no value in applying any more 
poison than is necessary to make a thin film over the surface, and 
more than that is wasted. Because a certain amount of poison 
will kill an insect does not indicate that a larger amount can kill 
it any " deader." Experiments have also shown that tobacco 
sprayed as recommended cannot possibly bear enough arsenic to 
be injurious, and that cattle or horses may be pastured under 
trees sprayed with arsenicals with impunity.* 

2. Contact Insecticides 

Contact insecticides are used against insects with sucking 
mouth-parts and soft-bodied biting insects which may be more 
readily destroyed by this means than by arsenicals. These sub- 
stances are fatal to the insect either by clogging the spiracles 
or trachea, and thus causing suffocation, or by corroding the 
skin. It should be remembered that the chitinous skin of most 
insects is not easily corroded, and that in most cases a material 
strong enough to penetrate the skin will also injure foliage, so that 
only soft-bodied insects can be combated with corrosive sub- 
stances upon foliage. 

In the application of contact insecticides it is absolutely essen- 
tial that the spray come into contact with the insect, as a mere spray- 
ing of the foliage is of no value whatever. 

1. Kerosene emulsion is one of the oldest remedies for plant- 
lice and other sucking and soft-bodied insects, and is often 
resorted to because it is readily made and the materials are 
always at hand. 

Dissolve ^ pound of hard or whale-oil soap (or 1 quart soft 
soap) in 1 gallon of boiHng water. Add 2 gallons of kerosene and 

* This is not true of grass beneath trees which have been sprayed with 
a straight-jet fire-hose, as is commonly done in Massachusetts in the extensive 
operations against the gypsy moth, but refers to spraying which has been 
done with an ordinary spray nozzle, which applies the material as a fine spray. 



INSECTICIDES 45 

churn with a force pump by pumping back and forth for five to 
ten minutes until the oil is thoroughly emulsified, forming a 
creamy mass with no drops of free oil visible. This stock solution 
is now diluted so that the resulting mixture will contain the de- 
sired per cent of kerosene. Thus for aphids one part of the stock 
solution should be diluted with from 10 to 15 parts of water, giving 
from 4 to 6 per cent of kerosene in the spray, while for a winter 
wash for San Jose scale, it should be diluted only three or four 
times, giving from 16 to 22 per cent kerosene. The emulsion must 
be thoroughly churned and should be applied with a nozzle throw- 
ing a fine spray. Apply only enough to wet the insects. Equally 
effective emulsions may be made from crude petroleum, the pro- 
portion of the soap and crude oil in the stock emulsion varying 
with the quality of the oil. Emulsions made with some of the 
crude oils seem to be much less injurious to foliage of some plants 
than when made with kerosene. Such an emulsion is made in 
California from distillate oils and is known as distillate emulsion. 
We have used crude Texas oils with equal success. 

2. Kerosene. — Pure kerosene should never be used on foliage, for 
though occasionally someone will report using it successfully 
without injury, in practically all cases serious burning of the foliage 
results. It was formerly recommended against the San Jose 
scale on fruit trees, but such serious injury resulted that it has been 
almost entirely discarded, though it may be used on apple and pear 
trees if applied with a nozzle which throws a fine spray, on a bright 
sunny day, and only a very thin film applied to the tree while it is 
dormant, but even these trees are often injured if the application 
is not made with the greatest care. 

3. Crude Petroleum. — Crude petroleum is used in the same man- 
ner as kerosene against scale insects, but seems to be less injurious 
to the tree, and has been extensively used in New Jersey against 
the scale on peaches, where but little injury has resulted where it 
has been carefully applied. It contains more heavy oils and con- 
sequently does not penetrate the bark so readily, and the light oils 
evaporating leave the heavy oils on the bark for some months, 
which aids in preventing young scales from getting a foothold. 
Crude oil for use as an insecticide should have a specific gravity of 
from 43° to 45° Beaume scale, and is sold by certain Eastern com- 
panies as " insecticide oil." 



46 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

4. Miscible Oils. — During the last few years several manufac- 
turers have placed on the market under various trade names what 
are now called miscible oils. These are petroleum rendered solu- 
ble by the addition of vegetable oils, cut or saponified with an 
alkah, and are really a sort of liquid petroleum soap which will 
combine readily with water. They have been used principally 
as winter washes against the San Jose scale, for which they are 
most effective when diluted 10 or 12 times. For a summer wash 
they have been used effectively against plant-lice and other insects 
for which kerosene emulsion would be used, diluted 25 to 30 times. 
In barrel lots the miscible oils sell at 40 to 50 cents per gallon, thus 
making the cost of a gallon of mixture for a winter application at 
10 per cent, 4 or 5 cents per gallon. 

5. Whale-oil and Other Soaps. — Any good soap is an effective 
insecticide for destroying aphides and young or soft-bodied larvae. 
Any good laundry soap made into a thick solution one-half pound 
per gallon is an excellent remedy for such insects on house- 
plants. Whale-oil or fish-oil soap has been extensively used 
against scale insects and plant-lice. The best brands are made 
from caustic potash rather than caustic soda, and should contain 
not over 30 per cent of water, there being wide variation in the 
water content. For the pea aphis and other aphids 1 pound 
to 6 gallons of water has been found very effective. For a win- 
ter wash for the San Jose scale 2 pounds per gallon of water are 
applied while hot, the soap being dissolved in hot water. The 
soap can be bought for 3| to 4 cents a pound in large quantities, 
thus making the treatment for scale cost from 7 to 8 cents a 
gallon, 

6. Lime-sulfur Wash. — The lime-sulfur wash has long been 
the standard remedy for the San Jose scale on the Pacific Coast, 
and during the last 15 years has come into wide use in the East 
for the same pest. It has also been found to be an efficient 
remedy for the pear leaf blister-mite and the oyster-shell bark- 
louse. In addition to its insecticidal properties it is an excellent 
fungicide, and the spring applications just before the buds start 
are very effective in kilhng out the wintering spores of various 
fungous diseases, while the diluted wash is being used as a summer 
spray for fungous diseases in place of bordeaux mixture. 



INSECTICIDES 47 

The usual formula is, unslaked stone lime, 20 pounds; flowers 
(or flour) of sulfur, 15 pounds, water to make 50 gallons. Stir 
up enough water with the sulfur to make a thick paste. Slake 
the lime in the vessel in which it is to be cooked with a small 
quantity of hot water. Then add the sulfur paste to the slaking 
lime. Add 10 or 15 gallons of water and boil for forty-five min- 
utes. The mixture may then be diluted to make a barrel of 45 or 
50 gallons, straining it carefully into the spray barrel or tank. A 
large iron kettle or hog-scalder may be used for boiling the wash, 
or where steam can be made available a steam pipe may be run 
into several barrels and the wash boiled in them. Such 
barrels may well be placed upon a platform so that the wash 
may be drawn from them directly into the spray-tank. The 
materials for making the wash will cost 1| to 1^ cents per gallon 
and the labor practically as much more. The leading manufac- 
turers and dealers in insecticides are now selling concentrated 
lime-sulfur solution which is all ready for use by merely diluting 
to the desired strength, at a rate which will make the solution 
to be used cost from 2| to 3 cents per gallon, nearly as cheap 
as it can be made at home and' with the saving of time and a dis- 
agreeable job. In some commimities a central plant makes the 
wash and can sell it with a fair profit at a low rate. 

7. Home-made Concentrated Lime-sulfur. — During the last few 
seasons many large growers have been making their own con- 
centrated lime-sulfur solution, and where the quantity to be 
used warrants, a considerable saving may be effected. The New 
York Agricultural Experiment Station has made very careful 
studies* of the best methods of making and diluting the mixture 
from which the following is quoted : 

Geneva Station Formula for Concentrated Lime-sulfur Solution. 

f Pure CaO 36 lbs. 

Lime \ If 95 per cent pure 38 lbs. 

[If 90 per cent pure 40 lbs. 

Sulfur, high grade, finely divided 80 lbs. 

Water 50 gals 

*Bulletins 329 and 330 N. Y. (Geneva) Agricultural Experiment Station 



48 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



DiLOTIONS FOR DORMANT AND StTMMER SpRATING WITH LiME-SULPHUR 

Mixtures. 



Reading on 


Amount of Dilution. Number of Gallons of Water to One 
Gallon of I.imc-sulfur Solution. 


hydrometer. 


For San Jose Scale. 


For Blister-mite. 


For Summer Spray- 
ing of Apples. 


Degrees Beaume 

36 


9 

SM 

8 

7^ 

7M 

6^ 
6 

5 

4M 

3M 
SH 
3 

2H 

2H 
2 


12H 
12 

IIH 
11 

103^ 

10 

93^ 
9 

8 

7 

6 

5K 

5 

4M 

4M 

4 

3M 
3H 
3 


45 


35 


43 M 


34 


41 J^ 


33 


40 


32 


37M 


31 


36M 


30 


34M 


29 


32% 


28 


31 


27 


29 K 


26 


27M 


25 


26 


24 


24M 


23 


22% 


22 


21% 


21 


19% 


20 


18% 


19 


17 


18 


16 


17 


15 


16 


14 


15 


12% 







" In making, slake the lime in about 10 gallons of hot water, 
adding the lumps of lime gradually to avoid too violent boiling and 
spilling over. . . . The sulfur must be thoroughly moistened 
and made into an even, fluid paste without lumps (before adding to 
the lime) .... Pour in the sulfur paste gradually during the 
slaking, stirring constantly to prevent the formation of lumps, 
and when the slaking has finished add the full amount of water 
and boil gently for one hour. If kettles and fire are used, more 
than the required amount of water may be used at first, to com- 
pensate for evaporation, or the volume may be kept constant by 
adding successive small quantities to hold the mixture at the 
original level, as shown by a notch on a stick resting on the bot- 
tom of the kettle, and marked when the mixture first begins to 
boil. When boiHng with hve steam the mixture will be more 
likely to increase in volume than to decrease, so that no water 
need be added. 



INSECTICIDES 49 

" This concentrate will keep with little change, unless the 
weather is below 5° F., if stored in filled, stoppered barrels. 
Even in open receptacles there will be no loss if the surface be 
covered by a layer of oil to prevent access of air. Each boiling 
should be tested with a Beaume hydrometer* and its density 
marked on the barrels or other containers." 

The dilution is based upon the specific gravity as shown by 
the hydrometer and may be safety made according to the out- 
line in the above table. 

In making this mixture it is important that only high-grade, 
pure lime should be used, and lime with less than 90 per cent 
calcium oxid (CaO) should be discarded. 

8. Self-boiled Lime-sulfur. — Self-boiled lime-sulfur has proven 
to be the only safe fungicide for the foliage diseases of the 
peach and stone fruits, and is used extensively as a summer spray 
on pome fruits. As a winter wash for San Jose scale it has not 
proven effective, but when used as a summer spray for fungous 
diseases it has some considerable insecticidal value. This mixture 
has been developed chiefly by the work of Mr. W. M. Scott 
formerly of the United States Department of Agriculture, from 
whose latest buUetint the following is quoted: 

" In order to secure the best action from the lime, the mix- 
ture should be prepared in rather large quantities, at least enough 
for 200 gallons of spray, using 32 pounds of lime and 32 pounds 
of sulfur. The lime should be placed in a barrel and enough water 
(about 6 gallons) poured on to almost cover it. As soon as the 
lime begins to slake the sulfur should be added, after first running 
it through a sieve to break up the lumps, if any are present. 
The mixture should be constantly stirred and more water (3 or 
4 gallons) added as needed to form at first a thick paste and then 
gradually a thin paste. The lime will supply enough heat to 
boil the mixture several minutes. As soon as it is well slaked 
water should be added to cool the mixture and prevent further 
cooking. It is then ready to be strained into the spray tank, 
diluted, and applied. 

" The stage at which cold water should be poured on to stop 

* These hydrometers, made specially for testing lime-sulfur mixture, may 
be obtained from the Bausch & Lomb Optical Co., Rochester, N. Y., and 
other dealers in laboratory glassware. 

t Farmers' Bulletin, 440, U. S. Dept. of Agr., p. 34. 



50 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

the cooking varies with different hmes. Some Hmes are so sluggish 
in slaking that it is difficult to obtain enough heat from them to 
cook the mixture at all, while other limes become intensely hot 
on slaking, and care must be taken not to allow the boiling to 
proceed too far. If the mixture is allowed to remain hot for 
fifteen or twenty minutes after the slaking is completed, the sulfur 
gradually goes into solution, combining with the lime to form 
sulfides, which are injurious to peach foliage. It is therefore 
very important, especially with hot lime, to cool the mixture 
quickly by adding a few buckets of water as soon as the lumps 
of lime have slaked down. The intense heat, violent boiling, 
and constant stirring result in a unifonn mixture of finely divided 
sulfur and lime, with only a very small percentage of the sulfur 
in solution. It should be strained to take out the coarse particles 
of lime, but the sulfur should be carefully worked through the 
strainer." 

Its most important use is as a carrier for the arsenical, usually 
arsenate of lead, used in spraying peach trees and other plants 
with tender foliage. 

9. Sulfur. — Pure sulfur is one of the best remedies for red 
spider, on whatever plants it may occur, and for other mites which 
infest citrus fruits. It may be dusted on the infested plants or trees 
or applied with any other insecticide, using 1 or 2 pounds to 50 
gallons. For citrus-mites the lye-sulfur wash and sulfide of lime 
are extensively used. Sulfur is frequently dusted in poultry 
houses to rid them of lice, and may be mixed with lard and rubbed 
on the skin of domestic animals affected with lice. 

10. Pyrethrum, buhach, or Persian insect powder, is made by 
pulverizing the petals of the pyrethrum blossom, and kills insects 
by clogging their breathing pores. It is not poisonous to man or 
domestic animals and may therefore be used where other insecti- 
cides would be objectionable. It is chiefly used for household 
pests, and in greenhouses and small gardens. It deteriorates 
rapidly with age and should be kept in tight cans. An objection 
to much commonly bought is that it has been kept in stock too 
long by the retailer, thus losing its strength. Large users buy 
direct from the only American manufacturers, the Buhach Pro- 
ducing Co., Stockton, Cal. It may be used as a dry powder, 
pure or diluted with flour, or in water at the rate of 1 ounce to 2 



INSECTICIDES 51 

gallons, which should stand a day before using. For immediate 
use it should be boiled in water for five or ten minutes. It is fre- 
quently burnt in rooms to destroy mosquitoes and flies, for which 
it is effective, without leaving any odor after the room is aired.* 

11. Tobacco. — A tobacco decoction may be made by boiling or 
steeping tobacco leaves, stems, and refuse in water at the rate of 
1 pound to 1 or 2 gallons. This may be diluted slightly according 
to the strength of the tobacco and the insect to be combated. 
Such a decoction is an excellent remedy for dipping plants affected 
with aphids, and may be used as a spray for plant-lice and similar 
soft-bodied insects. Various extracts and solutions of tobacco are 
now sold by manufacturers which are extensively used in spraying 
against plant-lice, and which are proving more satisfactory on 
account of their uniform strength. Tobacco dust has been used 
successfully against root-infesting aphids by removing the sur- 
face soil and applying a liberal dressing of the dust and then 
covering. The rains leaching through the tobacco carry the 
tobacco water to the affected roots and destroy or repel the 
aphids. 

12. Commercial Tobacco Products are much more widely used 
than home-made forms for the reason that they are uniform in 
their strength and therefore more dependable in their action. 
Practically all the commercial tobacco extracts are produced by 
one company, the Kentucky Tobacco Products Co., of Louisville, 
Ky. The most widely used of their products is called "Black- 
Leaf 40 " and is generally recommended as the most satisfactory 
remedy for soft-bodied sucking insects which require treatment 
during the growing season of the plant. " Nicofume," another 
of their products, differs from the " Black-Leaf 40 " in that it con- 
tains nicotine in volatile form and is therefore useful as a fumigant 
as well as for spraying. Its greatest value is in the greenhouse. 
It will be found satisfactory usually to use these materials a little 
stronger than is recommended by the company, otherwise the 
directions accompanying the material will apply. 

■ 13. Soaps of many kinds are efficient insecticides. They are 

used as a substitute for kerosene emulsion and tobacco extracts 

to combat aphids and other insects, especially on house plants and 

in greenhouses. Various soaps are especially prepared to be used 

* See Farmers' Bulletin, 444, U. S. Dept. Agr., p. 7. 



52 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

as insecticides and many of these have value. Whale-oil or fish- 
oil soap is more widely used as an insecticide than other kinds. It 
may be prepared at home, using about twenty pounds of the oil, 
which should be saponified by stirring into it a solution of 5 to 6 
pounds caustic soda in a half-gallon of water. These soaps may 
be found on the market, ready for use and in normal times are 
fairly cheap. They are widely used in nurseries to keep young 
trees free from scale and aphids. 

14. Carbolic acid emulsion is used for various purposes. It is 
valuable to kill aphids and soft-bodied scale-insects and is used 
also for insects which attack the roots of some garden crops. It 
is made from whale-oil soap, 40 lbs., dissolved in 40 gallons of 
water and boiled for twenty minutes with 5 gallons crude carbolic 
acid. This product is diluted at the rate of one gallon to 15 or 
20 gallons of water for use. 

3. Repellants 

Repellants include any substance which may be applied to a 
plant or animal to prevent insect attack. A popular notion that 
any vile-smelling substance will repel insect attack seems to have 
very little evidence in its support. Tobacco dust, air-slaked Hme, 
or even fine road dust, thoroughly covering a plant will prevent 
the attack of various flea-beetles and leaf-eating beetles, but to be 
successful the plants must be frequently dusted and kept well cov- 
ered. Bordeaux mixture, our most widely used fungicide, when 
liberally sprayed on potatoes and tomatoes, acts as a repellant to 
the little black flea-beetles which often seriously damage the 
young plants. 

The various fly-sprays which are used for spraying cattle to 
prevent the annoyance of flies act merely as repellants. 

Fruit-trees are often painted with a thick soap solution con- 
taining 1 pint of crude carbolic acid to 10 gallons as a repellant 
for the adult borers which lay their eggs on the bark. 

A substance which has come into prominence in the fight 
against the gypsy moth in New England is tree tanglefoot, a sticky 
substance the same as is used to coat fly-papers. This comes in the 
form of a very sticky paste, a band of which is placed around the 
trunk of the tree and which prevents the ascent of caterpillars, as 



INSECTICIDES 53 

it will remain sticky for some weeks. It may be used in the same 
way to prevent the wingless female canker worms and other 
wingless insects from ascending trees, or to prevent the ascent of 
caterpillars on unaffected trees. 

Various proprietary insecticides are frequently offered for sale 
with wonderful claims for their effect as repellants, but only in rare 
cases are they of any value except for use as a dust as already sug- 
gested. One of the most common fakes of this sort is that of the 
itinerant tree-doctor who offers to bore a hole in a tree and plug 
it with sulfur or other offensive compounds, which will effectively 
prevent any insect or fungous depredations. A generous price 
per tree is charged, which is the only " effect " of the treatment. 

Bordeaux mixture is not, generally speaking, an insecticide 
but it does have a repelling action on some insects, notably the 
flea-beetles which attack potatoes and tomatoes. It is the most 
widely used fungicide and it or lime sulfur " summer strength " 
will practically always be included in the spray applied for insects, 
so it is well for all interested in spraying to be familiar with bor- 
deaux. It is prepared by mixing a solution containing three to 
five pounds copper sulphate (bluestone), with a mixture of four 
to six pounds lime. These may be in from 5 to 25 gallons of water 
and should be mixed by pouring both at the same time into a 
third container, usually the spray tank or barrel. The total 
liquid from the above amounts should be 50 gallons. 

Asphalt paint and even asphaltum are applied to trunks and 
branches of trees to keep out borers. Heating is generally required 
and the application is somewhat difficult but good results have 
been obtained. 

4» Gases 

Carbon Bisuljid (or disulfid) is extensively used against insects 
affecting stored goods and grains, and for root-feeding insects. It 
is a clear, volatile liquid giving off fumes heavier than air. It may 
be thrown directly onto grain without injury to it or placed in 
shallow dishes. For grain in store in fairly tight rooms apply one 
pound to every 100 bushels, distributing the bisulfid over the 
surface or in pans containing not over one-half to 1 pound each. 
Make the enclosure as tight as possible, covering the grain with 
blankets or other tight cover, if necessary, and leave for twenty- 



54 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

four hours. Recent experiments have shown that the vapor is 
much less effective at low temperatures and that the dosage must 
be greatly increased at temperatures below 60° F. For fumi- 
gating buildings " there should be about 1 square foot of evap- 
orating surface to every 25 square feet of floor area, and each 
square foot of evaporating surface should receive from one-half 
to 1 pound of liquid." For fumigating clothing or household 
goods, place them in a tight trunk and place an ounce of liquid 
in a saucer just under the cover. The gas is exceedingly explosive; 
allow no fire or light of any kind around the building or enclosure 
until it has been well aired. The fumes should not be inhaled, for 
though not seriously poisonous, they have a suffocating effect and 
will soon produce dizziness and a consequent headache. The 
treatment for root-maggots and root-feeding aphides is discussed 
in connection with those insects (pages 317 and 435).* 

Hydrocyanic Acid Gas is extensively used for the fumigation 
of nursery trees and plants, certain greenhouse insects, pests of 
dwelling houses, storehouses, mills, etc. It is made by combining 
cyanide of potassium or sodium, sulphuric acid and water. The 
gas is slightly lighter than air and is one of the most deadly poisons 
known. It should be used only under competent direction and 
by persons thoroughly capable of understanding the directions 
and carrying them out. Under such circumstances the danger is 
negligible. Brief directions follow but these should be supple- 
mented by first-hand advice which considers the local factors. 

Take for each 100 cubic feet of space one ounce of the cyanide, 
one ounce of the acid and three ounces of water. iProvide stone 
jars which will not be filled more than one-third full by the quantity 
of materials to be used. Use one or more for each room, accord- 
ing to the size of the room. Weigh out the cyanide and place 
the amount for each jar in a paper bag beside the jar. Pour the 
water into the jar and then add the acid, stirring gently at the 
time. Arrange the material in this manner for all the rooms. 
The building should previously have been made as nearly air- 
tight as possible. An exit on the ground floor should have been 
provided and arranged so that it can be quickly closed and pro- 

* For a complete discussion of the use of this gas, see Farmers' Bulletin, 
145, U. S. Dept. Agri., and see page 184 below. 

Carbon tetrachloride is now used for some purposes in much the same 
manner as carbon bisulphide, and is not so explosive. 



INSECTICIDES 55 

vision for opening some doors or windows on each floor from the 
outside should have been made. 

Needless to say, the building can not be entered during the 
fumigation. When all is in readiness the operator or operators 
should start on the upper floor, in the rooms farthest removed 
from the stairway and drop the bags of cyanide quickly into the 
jars of liquid, go quickly to the next floor below and repeat the 
operation and so on to the ground floor and from there outside, 
closing and locking the last door. The building should be locked 
and placarded and it is well to have a watchman to warn people 
from the vicinity. After 12 to 24 hours the windows and doors 
should be opened from the outside and the building allowed to 
air for one to three hours when it will be safe to enter. Inside 
doors should be left open. A thick newspaper should be placed 
under each jar to protect the floor from splashing of the liquid 
which may occur during the generation of the gas, which may be 
violent. The cyanide used must be 98 to 99 per cent pure and the 
acid of specific gravity 1.83, commercial. This treatment will 
kill all stages of insects, also rats and mice but will not injure the 
contents of the house in any way excepting that moist foods 
should not be exposed to the gas. Let us repeat, however, that 
the gas is one of the most violent poisons known. 

Cyanide fumigation is extensively used on the Pacific Coast 
for the control of insects on fruit trees, these being fumigated 
under specially constructed tents. Dosage tables and other in- 
formation concerning this practice should be secured through the 
California Experiment Station at Berkeley where Dr. C. W. 
Woodworth has largely perfected the methods used. 

Sulfur Dioxid. — The fumes of burning sulfur, mostty sulfur 
dioxid, have long been recognized as a standard remedy for the 
fumigation of dwellings and barracks for insect pests. Successful 
fumigation for the bedbug has been reported when stick sulfur has 
been burned at the rate of 2 pounds per 1000 cubic feet of space. 
The chief objection is the strong bleaching effect of the fumes in 
presence of moisture and their destructive action on vegetation. 
Recently this gas has been extensively used under the name of 
"' Clayton gas," for the fumigation of ships and ships' cargoes, par- 
ticularly grain. It is forced into the tight hold of a ship by special 
apparatus and is exceedingly penetrating and effective. The 



56 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

germinating power of seeds is quickly destroyed, but they are not 
injured for food. 1 to 5 per cent of the gas, with an exposure of 
twenty-four hours, is effective for most seed and grain pests. It 
cannot be used on vegetation or for moist fruits. 

Tobacco Fumes. — Tobacco is extensively used as a fumigant 
for aphids in greenhouses and for certain plants, such as melons, 
by using it under covers. Several forms are now commonly 
Used. Tobacco or nicotine extracts are sold under various trade 
names, and are volatilized by heating either with a small lamp 
or by dropping hot irons into the dishes containing the fluid. 
The same material may be purchased in the form of paper which 
has been saturated with the extract and which is burned accord- 
ing to directions, a certain amount being sufficient for so many 
cubic feet of space, which forms a more convenient method of 
application. Certain finely ground tobacco powders, called 
" fumigating-kind " tobacco powder, are used in the same way 
and are much the cheapest form of tobacco for fumigation, 
though requiring slightly more work in preparing for fumigation. 
These tobacco preparations are excellent for the fumigation of 
household plants, which may be placed in a closet and then 
fumigated according to the directions of the particular brand 
employed. Melon vines, young apple trees, bush fruits, and 
similar outdoor crops may be effectively rid of plant-lice by 
fumigating with tobacco-paper under a frame covered with 
canvas or mushn sized with glue or Hnseed oil.* 

5. Application of Insecticides 

Insecticides, especially stomach poisons and contact poisons, 
are usually applied in the form of a spray delivered under pressure 
by a force pump, the liquid being broken up into a fine mist by 
some kind of nozzle constructed for that purpose. As sprays 
they are, of course, always mixed with water according to pro- 
portions which will be mentioned at the proper places. In place 
of pure water, bordeaux mixture or dilute lime-sulphur is some- 
times used and the spray then serves the double purpose of con- 
trolHng insects and plant diseases. In some cases the fungicide, 

* For further discussion of Insecticides see Farmers' Bulletin 127, U. S. 
Department of Agriculture. 



INSECTICIDES 57 

a stomach poison and a contact poison are all mixed together 
forming what might be called a " complete spray." 

Arsenical poisons, and in a very few instances contact insec- 
ticides, are sometimes applied in the dry form as dusts, the process 
being called dusting or, less properly, dust-spraying. Truck 
crops may be dusted on a small scale without special machinery 
and the method is therefore often more convenient for the small 
gardener than spraying. Recent experiments have shown that 
dusts are as effective as sprays in controlling the insects which 
affect most orchard fruits and foliage. The method has not been 
generally adopted as yet for the reason that it is still doubtful 
whether dusts as at present used will entirely control the fungous 
diseases of the orchard. This in spite of the fact that dusting was 
first extensively used to control a fungus disease, the mildew of 
grapes. Dusting has many advantages over spraying, notably, 
its greater rapidity, it being possible for one outfit to dust as much 
in a day as several spray outfits can cover, and the elimination of 
the necessity to provide a water supply for the sprayers, also the 
consequent lightening of the outfits due to the elimination of the 
water. It is therefore to be hoped that the method will be devel- 
oped so that it is applicable for all the pests of the orchard. 

Stomach poisons are frequently used in the form of baits 
rather than applied directly to the plants to be protected. In 
such cases substances attractive to the insects are poisoned and 
placed where they can get them easily, usually near the plants. 
The most commonly used bait is poisoned bran-mash prepared 
according to a formula based on old usage but perfected at the 
Kansas Experiment Station. It is made as follows: 

Bran 20 lbs. 

Paris green 1 lb. 

Cheap syrup 2 qts. 

Water 3}4 gals. 

Place the Paris green and the bran in a tub and mix thoroughly 
while dry. Dissolve the syrup in the water and mix this with 
the poisoned bran, stirring thoroughly. To make the mixture 
more attractive to many insects, especially grasshoppers, it is 
flavored with oranges or lemons. This requires three oranges or 
lemons. They are chopped into fine bits and the chopped fruits, 
juice and all, are added to the mash above and stirred in thoroughly. 



58 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

This may be applied broadcast, preferably late in the evening or 
very early in the morning or it may be placed in small quantities 
near the plants liable to attack. Chickens should be kept away 
from the mash. 

Poisoned syrups are at times sprayed on plants so that the 
adult insects, generally forms with sucking mouth parts, may be 
killed before they lay their eggs. This method has been used to 
some extent to control onion maggots by killing the flies which 
produce them. 

6. Stickers or Adhesives 

It is sometimes necessary to use some material with the in- 
secticide in order to make the spray stick to the leaves of plants 
like cabbage. For this purpose a cheap form of syrup or molasses 
is sometimes used. This is used also, at times, to make the spray 
attractive to the insects so that they will eat larger quantities of 
it and be more quickly killed. Syrup is not generally as good a 
spreader or adhesive as some other materials. A soap containing 
resin is as effective as any material in use. This material may be 
made at home but the process is tedious and somewhat messy 
and it will be more simple in most cases to purchase it. A simple 
preparation of resin, used for the most part with bordeaux mixture, 
is made by boiling 2 pounds resin, one pound sal soda and 1 gallon 
of water together in an iron kettle for one to two hours. This 
amount is needed for each fifty gallons of spray. 

Cactus solution, compounds of casein from milk and many 
other substances have been used as adhesives and spreaders but 
their use is not yet firmly established as successful. 



CHAPTER VI 

SPRAYING AND DUSTING APPARATUS 

Atomizers. — Hand atomizers of the general style shown in 
Fig. 26 may be purchased at any hardware store, and are useful 
for applying soap or oil solutions to a few house or garden plants. 
They are not adapted for more extensive use and to try to spray 
many plants, or a tree, with them, is a waste of time. 

Bucket Pumps. — The simplest type of spray pump is that 
made to use in a bucket. The better types usually cost $5 to 




Fig. 26. — An atomizer handy for spraying a few plants. 

$15, the cheaper styles, selling for $2 or $3, being inferior and 
unsatisfactory. 

There is as much difference in the structure of bucket pumps 
as in those of the barrel type, and many of the statements made 
below concerning the latter will apply also to bucket pumps. 
The bucket pump should have an air chamber, so that a steady 
pressure may be maintained. Some firms are making bucket 
pumps, of the same general type as the barrel pump shown in Fig. 
34, which are very satisfactory in this regard. A foot-rest attached 
to the pump and a clamp to attach the pump to the bucket are 
useful accessories. 

Many firms are now selling these pumps mounted in large 
galvanized-iron covered buckets, and furnished with a mechanical 
agitator. This is a desirable arrangement, for the buckets are 

59 



60 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

much larger than those ordinarily used, thus saving frequent 
filling, while the cover prevents slopping, and the pump is always 
ready for use without the necessity of hunting up a bucket and 





Fig. 27. — a, a cheap type of bucket pump with no air-chamber, which will 
not maintain satisfactory pressure; b, a better type of busket pump 
with small air-chamber. (Courtesy Deming Co.) 

then cleaning it, which is necessary after using a bucket which 
is used for other purposes. 

Bucket pumps are useful for small gardens or for a few small 
trees or bushes. 

Knapsack Pumps. — The knapsack pump consists of a copper 
or galvanized-iron tank, carried on the back like a knapsack, in 
which is mounted a bucket pump with a lever handle for pumping. 
In the better makes this handle is detachable and a plain handle 
may be attached so that the tank may be used as a simple bucket 
pump, for which a foot-rest is attached to the tank. The pump 
should have a good mechanical agitator. The copper tanks 
are preferable, for bordeaux mixture will soon eat through gal- 
vanized iron. Knapsack pumps are useful for spraying such 
crops as tomatoes, melons, etc., which cover the ground so that 
it is difficult to drive through them without injuring the vines, 
crops growing on steep hillsides, or for a small acreage of any 
garden crops, small fruits, or small trees. The main objections 



SPRAYING AND DUSTING APPARATUS 



61 



to them are that they are heavy to carry, thus limiting their use 
to a small area; they frequently slop over, and wet the carrier's 
back and the piraips do not develop sufficient pressure for some 
kinds of work. Consequently they are not as much used as 
formerly, but are useful for the pur- 
poses indicated, and inasmuch as 
they may also be used as a simple 
bucket pump, they are to be pre- 
ferred to them. The cost varies 
from S8 to -112 or $15. 

Compressed-air Sprayers. — In re- 
cent years the compressed air sprayer 
has come into favor for use in small 
gardens. It consists of a brass tank 





Fig. 28. — Bucket pump mounted in 
bucket, and mounted in tank with 
agitator. (Courtesy Deming Co.) 



Fig. 29. — Bucket pump with 
large air-chamber, which will 
maintain a good pressure. 
(Courtesy F. E. Myers& Bro.) 



which is filled with the liquid; the air is compressed by an 
air-pump, and spraying continues until the pressure runs down, 
when a stopcock is turned and the pressure is again raised by 
pumping. The tank holds from 3 to 5 gallons, and is carried 
beneath one arm, slung by a strap over the other shoulder. The 
chief objections to this type are that it is not verj'- convenient 
to fill, though the newer models are much improved, is not 



62 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 




readily repaired, has no agitator, and requires frequent pumping. 

On the other hand, they are easily carried, do not leak, and 

leave both hands free, so that 

one might be used for spraying 

a small tree from a step-ladder. 

These compressed-air sprayers 

cost from $8 to $20. 

Barrel Pumps. — The most ser- 
viceable spray pump for the 

average farm is the barrel pump. 

With a good barrel pump 100 to 

150 full-grown apple trees may be 

sprayed in a day, so that it will 

be found sufficient for an orchard 

of 500 trees or less. By using a 

row-spraying attachment, a few 

acres of potatoes or other row 

crops may be sprayed with a 

barrel pump much more quickly 

than by hand. In buying a row 

attachment, be sure that it is ad- 
justable for rows of different 

widths. A good barrel pump costs from $25 to $50. Most of 

the pmups sold for less are too light to do effective work or 

are not well con- 
structed. Numerous 
pump companies ad- 
vertise in the agricul- 
tural papers and after 
considering the follow- 
ing points one may 
select a suitable pump 
from their catalogs: 

1. The pump should 
be guaranteed to fur- 
nish two nozzles at 80 
to 100 pounds 'pressure 

Fig. 31. — ^The knapsack sprayer in use. . J P P 

(Spramotor Co.) ing. 



Fig. 30. — One of the best types of 
knapsack sprayers. Note foot- 
rest, agitator, handle, and wide 
straps. (Darning Co.) 






Fig. 32. — Compressed-air sprayer 
with section of tank removed 
to show air pump within. 



Compressed-air sprayer in posi- 
tion to use. 




Fig. 33. — An undesirable type of 
barrel sprayer — now off the 
market;* the air-chamber and 
other parts above the barrel 
render it top-heavy, and may 
be easily broken. 



Fig. 34. — A desirable type of barrel 
pump embodying most of the 
features described. (Morrill & 
Morley.) 



63 



64 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



2. It should have a large air chamber within the barrel, and 
not projecting above it 

3. As few of the working parts of the pump as possible should 
be above the head of the barrel, as exposed parts are easily broken. 

4. The cylinder, plunger, valves and working parts should be of 
brass. The handles and other parts commonly made of cast iron 
are much more durable when made of malleable or galvanized iron. 

5. There should be a good mechanical agitator of the paddle 
type, preferably arranged so that it can be worked with the 





Fig. 35. — Two types of double-acting lever pumps, to be mounted 
on truck and connected with tank. 

pump handle without operating the pump. An agitator is 
essential to keeping the mixture in suspension. Agitators of the 
so-called "jet-type," in which a stream from the bottom of the 
cylinder is supposed to agitate the liquid, are unsatisfactory 
and allow a loss of pressure without sufficiently agitating the 
liquid. 

6. The pump should be so attached to the barrel that it can 
be quickly removed for repairs. Those pumps which have lugs 
for attaching the pump plate to the barrel are much better than 
those with screws. 



SPRAYING AND DUSTING APPARATUS 



65 




Fig. 36. — A two-cylinder pump for use with tank. Good capacity and easy 
operation feature this type. (Courtesy the Friend Mfg. Co , Gasport, 

N. Y.) 

7. The valves, with their 
seats or cages, should be readily 
removable for cleaning, and 
should be so constructed that 
they remain evenly ground. 

All of these points may not 
be embodied in any one pump, 
but most of the better pump 
manufacturers are embodying 
these features in their newer 
models, a good example of 
which is shown in Fig. 34. 

Barrel, knapsack, and bucket 
pumps are manufactured which 
have separate tanks for oil and 
water which are mixed in a 
desired proportion and sprayed 
riG.37.— Gasoline power sprayer, com- as a mechanical mixture. 

plete Note widetread steel wheels, They have been found unre- 

steel tower on tank, and mtake hose ,, . 

for filling tank where running water liable m controlhng the amount 

is not available; 3^ h.p., 4-cycle of qJi and are not now in 

gasoline engme, will maintain 10 

nozzles at 200 lbs. pressure. general use 




66 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Horizontal Pumps. — For larger orchards and shade trees, the 
double-acting horizontal pumps which are operated with a lever, 




Fia. 38. — One of the latest three-cylinder power pumps designed for spray- 
ing shade-trees and woodlands. 




Fig. 39.- - Row-spraying attachment for use with barrel pump, adjustable for 
various width of rows. (Deming Co.) 

as shown in Figs. 35 and 36, furnish more power and consequently 
make more rapid work possible. They are mounted on 100 or 



SPRAYING AND DUSTING APPARATUS 67 

150-gallon tanks and may be arranged for filling the tank where 
running water is not available. These pumps cost from $30 to 
$50 and will maintain 100 to 125 pounds pressure with four to 
eight nozzles. They are usually used with two men spraying 
and another driving and pumping, or a fourth man pumps and 
changes places now and then with the driver, as the operation 
of this type is rather too heavy for one man constantly. 

Poicer Outfits.— Fov orchards of much over 500 trees or for 
extensive shade tree work a gasoline power outfit is more econom- 
ical and enables a large area to be covered more quickly, which is 
often a most important consideration. Most of the pump manu- 
facturers and many gas engine companies are selling such outfits 
mounted upon a truck, with spray tank, and tower complete for 
from $250 to $1000. 

Traction Sprayers. — For a small acreage of potatoes or other 
row crops, a barrel pump with row attachment is very satisfac- 
tory, but for any considerable acreage, a two-wheeled traction 
sprayer is much more economical of labor and time which are 
the two chief items in the cost of spraying. Such traction 
sprayers are made of widely different types, the power in all 
cases being furnished by a gear or chain which operates the pump 
from the wheels. The mechanical construction of the traction 
sprayers should be carefully studied, and if possible tested, before 
purchasing, as they differ greatly in efficiency. The better types 
cost from $100 to $200 and usually have attachments adapting 
them for all sorts of row crops, such as potatoes, strawberries, 
bush fruits, grapes, etc., which require different styles of piping 
to direct the nozzles properly. 

Several traction sprayers are sold for orchard work but, though 
they are fairly satisfactory for small trees, they do not develop 
enough power for spraying large trees, and have a heavy draft. 

Various other types of spraying machines have been tested 
and some of them put on the market. Among these may be 
mentioned gas-sprayers, where the gas in cylinders under pres- 
sure is used to furnish the pressure; and compressed air sprayers, 
where air compressed at a central station in large cylinders takes 
the place of gas. These have some great advantages but diffi- 
culties which arise in practical operations have kept them from 
being widely used. 



68 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Nozzles. — A good nozzle is as essential as a good pump for suc- 
cessful spraying. The best nozzles now in common use are of 
three tj^pes. 

The Vermorel type consists of a small chamber into which the 
liquid is admitted at a tangent and leaves through a small hole in a 
removable cap, thus making a fine, cone-shaped spray. A small 




Fig. 40. — A good type of geared sprayer for row crops. 



pin, with a spring to hold it back when not in use, serves as a dis- 
gorger to remove any sediment which may clog the outlet. This 
type of nozzle is made in many slightly different styles and often 
sold under trade names, such as the Demorel, Mistry and others. 
A slightly modifif-d form has no spring attached to the disgorger, 
but has a loose cap which is held away from the pin by the force of 
the liquid, and the outlet is disgorged by simply pressing the cap 
down on the pin. Such are the Spramotor (Spramotor Mfg. Co.) 
and Vapor-Mist Nozzles (Field Force Pump Co.) and are disgorged 
rather more easily than those with springs. 

Disc type. — An evolution from the older type of nozzles now 
in almost universal use is the disc nozzle. This has a broader and 



SPRAYING AND DUSTING APPARATUS 



69 



flatter chamber and is variously adapted to give to the Hquid a 
strong rotary motion which helps to break up the liquid into a 




Fig. 41. — Row sprayer applying arsenate of lead to potatoes, showing 
arrangement of nozzles to cover vines. (After Britton.) 

fine spray. There are usually interchangeable discs with aper- 
tures of varying sizes adapted for all degrees of fineness of spray 
and for varying the quantity of liquid delivered. Under ordi- 





FiG. 42 — Vermorel, bordeaux, and disk type of nozzles. 

nary conditions only one of these is needed on a rod to deliver all 
the liquid that the operator can handle properly. This does 
away with the necessity for " Y's " and lightens the rod. The 
illustration (Fig. 44) shows many of the modern types. 



70 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

The Bordeaux nozzle is of entirely different structure, the 
spray being formed by a straight stream hitting a lip which 

breaks it into a fan-shaped spray, the 
fineness of the spray being governed by 
the width of the aperture. To unclog 
the nozzle the core through which the 
stream emerges is reversed, thus giving 
a straight stream and clearing the nozzle 
immediately. For this reason the bor- 
deaux nozzle is particularly adapted to 

traction sprayers where several nozzles 
Fig. 43. — Angle form of disk j j -j. • x i 

type nozzle, particularly are used and it IS necessary to unclog 

useful for orchard spraying, them quickly. It is Usually preferred 
( nen g. o.j ^^^ garden and row crops, and some 

prefer it for tree work, though it is not as widely used for that 
purpose as the previous types. 

The bordeaux nozzle is of great value for applying white- 
wash, a purpose for which the spray outfit may well be used 




A # 4 # 

idP' ™ • ^ 



4 4 



Fig. 44. — Disk Nozzles. Top row (left 
to right): Atomic, New Eclipse, 
Whirlpool, Excclall. Middle row: 
Tiger Strainer, Fog, Bean Mist, 

Non clog Atomic. Lower row: Friend Fig. 45. — Types of bor- 

Regular, Friend Angle, Scientific, deaux nozzles. (From 

Mistry Jr. (From H. L. Crane, W. H. L. Crane, W. Va. 

Va. Agr. Expt. Sta.) Agr. Expt. Station.) 

during the off season. It, with the disk type, will be found to fill 
most of the needs of today for nozzles. 

Solid stream nozzles. — For special purposes, such as spraying 
woodlands or spraying large trees in parks or on city streets or 



SPRAYING AND DUSTING APPARATUS 



71 




Fig. 46. — Spray-guns in operation. (Friend Mfg. Co.) 

even for spraying old and 
very tall apple trees, a type 
of nozzle which delivers a 
solid stream of small di- 
ameter through a nozzle end- 
ing in a tube of about one- 
eighth inch diameter for two 
to five or six inches, is used. 
This requires a high pressure 
and forces the liquid high in 
the air where the pressure 
against the air tends to break 
it up into a mist. For or- 
dinary work in the orchard 
this type is not available. 

Spray-guns. — A recent de- 
velopment of the spray nozzle 
of the ordinar}^ type and the 
solid stream nozzle is the 
spray gun. This is a nozzle 
which can be made to deliver 
a mist like the ordinary yjo. 47. 




nozzle or a solid stream or 



Solid stream nozzle in operation. 
(Courtesy the Bean Spray Pump Co.) 



72 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

almost any gradation between the two. It delivers a large 
amount of liquid and will greatly reduce the time required to 
spray an orchard, especially where the 
trees are large. Like the solid stream 
nozzle it requires a high pressure, at 
least 250 to 300 pounds being desirable 




T-, Ao o Fig. 49. — Bamboo exten- 

FiG. 48.— Spray-guns: a. . , , , .. , 

Friend type. (Friend Mfg. ^'''" '^°? .^* j^f^' ^"^ 

Co.) b.Bean type. (Bean i^o" ^^^ ^'^^h drip-guard 

Spray Pump Co.) at right. 

for good work. Several types are on the market and while they 

are new to the industry they have already shown that effective 



SPRAYING AND DUSTING APPARATUS 



73 




insect and disease control can be secured with them. The spray- 
gun is used without a rod, it being long enough to be handled 
without the rod. 

Extension rods. — ^In orchard spraying where the spray gun is 
not used an extension rod is a necessity. This 
may be a bamboo rod with a brass or aluminum 
pipe inside, or it may be merely an iron pipe, 
one-fourth inch size. I^engths used vary with the 
size of the trees, ranging from eight feet to twelve Fig. 50. 45-de- 

feet. It is well to insist on a rod of sturdy con- gree elbow for 

, 1 . 1 • 1 • Ti 1 attaching noz- 

struction when purchasmg as one which is likely 2]gs i^ end of 

to pull apart at the connections and leak is a rod for orch- 
ard spraying. 
nuisance. 

Where the angle type of nozzle is not used it is a good plan to 
connect the nozzle with a 45-degree elbow in order that the spray 

' . may be more easily directed 
toward the tree. 

For low-growing bushes 
and truck crops a short rod 
with the nozzle attached at 
right angles will be found 
useful as it will enable one 
to spray the under side of 
these plants. 

Spray hose. — Use only the 
()est spray hose obtainable. 
The one-half inch size is most 
commonly used for orchard 
spraying. This should be 
guaranteed against a work- 
ing pressure of 300 pounds. 
Where a spray gun is used it 
is necessary to have three- 
quarter inch hose of still higher capacity. Quarter or three- 
eighths inch sizes are used for bucket pumps. 

A common mistake is using hose leads which are too short. 
Twenty-five feet should be the minimum and fifty feet is better. 
This enables the operator to get around the tree and to keep far 
enough away from the outfit so that the spray will not blow over 
the driver, sprayer and team. 




Fig. 51. — -Spraying squash with undsr- 
spray nozzle at right angle to rod. 



74 INSECT PESTS OF FARM GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

Connections and Cut-offs. — Hose connections are important. 
Nothing is more aggravating than to have the hose pull loose 
from its connections while operations are in progress. To prevent 




Fig. 52. — Spray hose connection, long shank type and spray hose mender. 

(The Bean Co.) 

this, use only connections with long shanks which may be fastened 
with two hose-clamps over each shank. Fig. 52 shows this type 
of connection and an adaptation of it used for mending breaks in 
hose or in splicing permanently two lengths of hose. A cut-off 
at each rod is necessary and this should be of 
a leak-proof type. A three-way cut-off at the 
pump is also necessary where there are two lines 
of hose operating With these there is complete 
control of the spray and one line can stop for 
repairs while the other continues to work. 

Towers. — Many operators like to use a tower 
for spraying large trees and many of the power 
sprayers are equipped with towers. Their 
value is questionable, however, and many 
laborers refuse to work in them. It is quite 
^shuf-oMiicfTal- probable that just as good work can be done, 
lows the hose lead in most cases, by using longer rods and reach- 
hen£nl "^Is^^lso ing the top of the tree from the spot nearest it 
very convenient, at the base of the trunk. In most cases the 
(FriendMfg.Co.) ^^^^.^^qj. ^^^ ^^ j^g^ ^s near the top in this posi- 
tion as he is when on the tower. The spray-gun does away with 
the need for the tower where it is used as it will reach the top of 
the tallest tree. 

Strainers.— To obviate the delay caused by nozzles clogging 
with dirt and sediment, strain all mixtures through a fine copper 
strainer when filling the spray tank. Have the tank tight and 
see that it is clean before filling. 




SPRAYING AND DUSTING APPARATUS 



75 



Busting Apparatus. — The simplest method of applying dusts 
is by means of a perforated can or a cheese-cloth or muslin bag 
and much dust is still applied to garden crops in this way Dust 
bellows to force dust into cracks for household pests, or to dis- 
tribute it more economically and evenly on plants, represent 
the next step. Various small dusters, but with larger capacity 
than the bellows, are used for small plantings. These are usually 
of the plunger type and the dust is puffed out rather than de- 
livered continuously. Dusters with a rotary fan or blower, de- 
livering the dust in a continuous stream are made in many sizes. 
Some are operated hy hand, 
others are geared to the truck 
upon which they are hauled 
so they operate only when 
the truck is in motion and 
some, the more modern or- 
chard outfits, are supplied 
with power from a gasoline 
engine. All types have their 
uses but we are more con- 
cerned with the commercial 
forms than with the more 
primitive apparatus. Or- 
chard dusters operated by 
hand are not satisfactory for use on any large scale. The power 
dusters on the market are quite efficient and will deliver large 
quantities of dust in dense clouds which have considerable carrying 
power. Dusting machines, owing to their more limited use, 
have not been mechanically perfected to the same degree as the 
sprayers but they undoubtedly will keep pace with the require- 
ments as they come into general use. 

Dusting mixtures are composed of arsenate of lead or of cal- 
cium mixed with some other substance which acts as a carrier. 
The carrier is often the fungicide or is a mixture of the fungicide 
with some inert material such as land-plaster or gypsum. The 
common formulas call for from 10 to 15 pounds arsenate with 85 
to 90 pounds finely ground sulfur, a special grade being pro- 
duced for this purpose. An inert material may displace any 
part of the sulfur but it is not the common practice to dilute 




Fig. 54. — Spraying with power outfit from 
a tower. (Bean Spray Pump Co.) 



76 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 





Fig. 55. — Orchard duster in operation. Courtesy the Niagara 
Sprayer Co., Middleport, N. Y. 



SPRAYING AND DUSTING APPARATUS 



77 



the mixture. Mixing is best accomplished by machinery con- 
structed for the purpose. The best means is to grind the ingre- 
dients together. Until methods of mixing are better standardized 
it will be wise for the user to get his materials ready-mixed. 




Fig. 56. — Another make of duster. (The Dust Sprayer Mfg. Co., 
Kansas City, Mo.) 

Dry powdered bordeaux mixture is being used to some extent 
as the fungicide in dusting formulas but is still in the experimental 
stage. 

Other mechanical devices for applying poisons and controlling 
insects will be discussed in connection with the group of insects 
for which they are most used.* 

* For further information concerning the application of insecticides see 
the following: Farmers Bulletin 908 (U. S. Dept. Agr.) "Information for 
Fruit Growers About Insecticides, Spraying Apparatus and Important 
Insect Pests," A. L. Quaintance and E. H. Siegler. 



CHAPTER VII 

Insects Affecting Grains, Grasses, Forage and Miscellaneous 

Crops 

Several of our worst insect pests live normally in grass land 
but when they become numerous feed upon grains and various 
forage and garden crops, so that they are not readily classed as 
enemies of an}'- one crop, and will therefore be discussed together. 

White Grubs * 

Among the most common pests of corn, strawberry beds, 
and garden crops are the large white grubs which feed upon 
the roots and often kill the plants. Their habit of lying curled 
up in a semicircle, and the large brown head, white body, and 
enlarged abdomen, at once distinguish them from other forms 
of grubs. Although they are very similar in color and form, 
there are numerous species, all of which are the young of different 
species of the large brown May-beetles or June-bugs, as they are 
commonly called, which frequently fly into lights in late spring. 

Life History. — The eggs are laid mostly in June, preferably 
in grass land, but also in corn fields and gardens. The egg is 
of a broad oval shape, pure white, about one-tenth inch long, 
and is laid in a small ball of earth a half inch in diameter, from 
1 to 5 inches below the surface. The eggs hatch in about two 
weeks, most of them hatching by the middle of July. The 
young grubs feed upon plant roots, and grow slowly, as it re- 
quires two years or more for them to become full-grown. In 
the fall they burrow down in the soil, gradually going deeper 
as frost approaches until by the first freeze most of them are 
from 7 to 14 inches deep. The next year they do much more 

* Lachnosterna spp. Family — Scarabcndce. See S. A. Forbes, Bulletin 116, 
Illinois Agricultural Experiment Station, and J. J. Davis, Farmers' Bulletin 
940, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 

78 



INSECTS AFFECTING GRAINS, GRASSES, ETC. 



79 



serious damage, and land which has been in sod and then 
planted in corn, strawberries, or other' crops of which they are 
fond, is often so full of the grubs that the crops are ruined. In 
1895 an Illinois field of 250 acres which had been in grass for 
twenty years was so injured that the sod could be rolled up 
like a carpet over the entire field. It is not surprising, therefore, 
that Professor Forbes records finding as many as thirtj^-foiir grubs 
to the hill of corn in another Illinois field which had previously 
been in sod. Where sod is taken into greenhouses the grubs 




Fig. 57. — Lachjiosterna arcuata: a, beetle; b, pupa; c, egg; d, newly-hatched 
larva; e, mature larva; /, anal segment of same from below, a, b, 
e, enlarged one-fourth; c, d, f, more enlarged. (After Chittenden, 
U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

often become serious pests. When the grub is two, or possibly 
sometimes three years old, it forms a small oval cell from 3 to 
10 inches below the surface and there changes to a soft, white pupa, 
sometime in June or July. The pupal stage lasts slightly more 
than three weeks, and in August or September the adult beetle 
wriggles out of the pupal skin, but remains in the pupal cell 
until the following spring, when it comes forth fully hardened. 
Thus three full years are occupied by the life-cj^'le of each brood, 
though grubs in all stages of development may be found in the 
soil every year. 

The adult beetles feed at night upon the foliage of various 
trees. They hide in the soil during the day, migrate to the trees 
at dusk, and return to the fields just before daybreak. The 
different species have favorite food plants, but all of our common 
deciduous shade and forest trees are more or less eaten, popl-ar, 



80 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

willow, and maple being particularly relished. On a warm evening 
the beetles may often be heard feeding and their work may be 
identified by the ragging of the foliage, as if it had been torn. 

Control. — As, allowing land to remain in grass for several years 
is conducive to the increase of the grubs, a frequent rotation will 
prevent their multiplication, the grass being followed by potatoes, 
buckwheat, small grains, or some crop not seriously injured by 
them. 

As the beetles remain in the pupal cells over winter and are 
tender and not fully hardened, deep plowing and thorough har- 
rowing in fall or early spring will kill large numbers of them 
by breaking open the cells and exposing them to the weather 
and by burying and crushing them. 

Swine will gorge themselves on grubs in badly infested land, 
and if confined so that they will thoroughly root it over, will 
very effectually rid it of them. Flocks of chickens or turkeys 
following the plow will catch a considerable number of grubs, 
as do the crows and blackbirds, which pay for the corn they eat 
by the war they wage on grubs. 

The beetles may be jarred from the trees upon which they are 
feeding in the cooler part of the night and collected, as is exten- 
sively done in Europe. Lanterns hung over pans or tubs contain- 
ing water with a surface film of kerosene placed near the trees on 
which they feed, will catch large numbers on warm nights when 
they are flying. 

Wireworms * 

Wireworms are hard, shining, slender, cylindrical, brown 
larvae about three-quarters to 1 inch long, which bore into the 
seed of corn, wheat and other grains, often necessitating 
replanting, and also feed on their roots, as well as on potatoes, 
turnips, and many garden crops. They are the young stage of 
brownish beetles of the family Elateridce, which from their 
habit of snapping their bodies up in the air are known as " click 
beetles." The beetles are one-half to three-quarters inch long, 
decidedly flattened, dark brown, often with darker markings, with 
short heads, and shield-shaped thoraxes, as shown in Fig. 58. 
Although the common wireworms look much alike, examination 

* Family Elateridce. 



INSECTS AFFECTING GRAINS/GRASSES, ETC. 



81 




usually reveals that they belong to several species which are dis- 
tinguished by a comparison of the caudal segments, as shown in 
Fig. 59. 

Life History. — The 
hfe history is very simi- 
lar to that of the white 
grubs, except that from 
three to five years are 
required for the com- 
plete life cycle. The 
eggs are deposited in old 
sod land, which is the 
favorite breeding 
ground. The detailed life his- 
tories have not been carefully 
studied, but the second year after 
grass land has been planted in 
grain is that in which the worst 
injury occurs, particularly with 
corn, upon which the attack is 
more concentrated than with small 
grains. The larvae become full 
grown in midsummer, form small 
cells in the soil and in them trans- 
form to pupae. Three or four 
weeks later the adult beetles shed 
the pupal skins, but few of them 
make their way to the surface 
during the fall, most of them re- 
maining in the pupal cells until 
the following spring. 

Control. — As they resemble the 
white grubs in Hfe-cycle, so the 
means of control are similar. By 
plowing in late summer or earlv Fig. 58.— A, beetle of wheat wire- 
fall and thoH,ughly harrowing for S ^('x'StY^^SrS ^7) "f 
a month or so, large numbers of Dmstenus elegans; C, the corn wire- 
the pupa, and newly transformed "After^SelT "*"'"'''^ ^'^' 




82 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

beetles will be destroyed. When the wireworms are numerous in 
restricted areas, as they often are on spots of low moist land, they 
may be effectually trapped with but little labor by placing under 
boards bunches of clover poisoned with Paris green. A short rotation 
of crops in which land is not allowed to remain in grass for any 
length of time will prevent their increase. Many remedies have 
been suggested for these pests but few of them have proved 
to have much merit in careful tests. Coating the seed with gas 
tar, as is done to protect it from crows, has been very widely 
practiced, and though previous experiments indicated that it could 
not be relied upon. Dr. H. T. Fernald conducted tests in Massa- 
chusetts in 1908 and 1909 in which seed coated with gas-tar 
and then dusted in a bucket of fine dust and Paris green suffi- 




FiG. 59. — A , last segment of Melanotits communis, dorsal view (After Forbes) ; 
B, the wheat wireworm, Agriotes mancus — a, b, c, d, details of mouth- 
parts, enlarged; C, caudal segment of the wireworm of Drasteterius 
elegans; D, caudal segment of the wireworm of Asaphes decoloratus, 
much enlarged. {A, C, D, after Forbes; B, after SUngerland.) 

cient to give the corn a greenish color, was effectively protected, 
the treatment seeming to act as a repellant, and not affecting 
the germination of the seed. 



The Stalk-borer * 

This species may well be called the stalk-borer, for it not only 
tunnels the stalks of potatoes — being often called the potato stalk - 
borer — and tomatoes, but frequently infests corn, cotton and a long 
list of garden crops, grains, grasses, flowering plants, and various 
common weeds. Apparently the latter, such as ragweed, cockle- 
bur and the like, are its normal food plants, and when they are 
destroyed or where more tender cultivated plants are near by, 
it attacks whatever is available. Two or three nearlj^ related 
species have very similar habits. 

* Papnipema nitela Gn. Family Noctuidoe. 



INSECTS AFFECTING GRAINS, GRASSES, ETC. 83 

The adult moth (Fig. 60) is a fawn-gray or mouse color, with 
the outer third of the fore-wings paler and bordered within by a 
whitish cross-line. 

Life History. — The eggs are laid in the fall on the stems of 
weeds and grasses, in masses of fifty or sixty, near the ground. 
They are about one-fiftieth inch in diameter, circular, grayish 
in color, with radiating ridges. They hatch in late May in 




Fig. 60. — The stalk-borer (Papaipema niiella Gn.): a, adult; b, half-grown 
larva; c. mature larva in burrow; d, side of one of its segments; e, 
pupa — all slightly enlarged. (From Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

southern Minnesota and the young caterpillars at once commence 
to mine small galleries in the leaves of the food plants, soon 
riddling the leaves. In a few days they work down to the bases 
of the leaves and enter the stalks, which they tunnel out and not 
infrequently leave one plant and migrate some little distance 
before entering another. Infested plants are readily recognized 
by the wilting of the parts above the larva, the work in corn 
being particularly noticeable and having given the local name 
of " heart-worm." The larvae become full grown about the 
first of August. They are readily recognized by the peculiar 
markings of the body (Fig. 60, b). The larva is about an inch 
long and varies from purplish to whitish brown, and is marked 



84 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

with five white stripes, one along the middle of the back, and two 
on each side. These side stripes are absent on the first four 
segments of the abdomen, giving the larva an appearance as if 
it had been pinched or injured there. As the larva matures the 
stripes become fainter. When ready to pupate the larva cuts a 
hole through the side of the stalk, and then transforms to the 
brown pupa in the lower part of the stalk. The pupal stage lasts 
about two or three weeks, and the moths emerge in late August, 
there being but one generation a year. 

Usually the injury to crops is only in the outer rows, to which 
the larvie have migrated from weeds growing along the edges, 
or in fields which have been weedy in early spring, or where the 
weeds have been allowed to get a start before being culti- 
vated out. 

Control. — From the life history and habits it is obvious that 
clean farming is the only method of effectual control. The 
destruction of weeds and fall plowing should prevent any general 
injury. Usually the injury is but local, and fortunately the 
caterpillars are attacked by numerous parasites which aid in 
their control, sometimes to the extent of killing 70 per cent of 
them. In small gardens the prompt destruction of infested 
plants will prevent the caterpillars from migrating to others. 
Where weeds are infested in or near a crop they should be destroyed 
as soon as cut, for if left on the ground the larvse will promptly 
migrate to the nearest plants. Where fields are kept clean of 
weeds there will be little trouble.* 

Cutworms t 

Under the general term cutworms we commonly designate 

any of the larvae of several species of moths which are more 

or less similar in general appearance and habits, and which have 

the habit of feeding on low-growing vegetation, and cutting off 

the stem just at the surface of the ground. They should be 

carefully distinguished from white grubs, which are sometimes 

wrongly called cutworms on account of their similar habits. Some 

* See Forbes, 23d Report State Entomologist of Illinois, p. 44; Washburn, 
12th Report State Entomologist of Minnesota, p. 151; Journal Economic 
Entomology, III, p. 165; Smith, Report N. J. Agr. Exp. Sta. for 1905, pp. 
584-587. 

t Various species of the family Noctuidce. 



INSECTS AFFECTING GRAINS, GRASSES, ETC. 



85 



of the species attack certain crops more commonly than others, 
but most of them are quite omnivorous in their feeding. When 




Fig. 61. — Earth removed from base of seedling tc show cutworm m hiding- 
natural size. 

they become overabundant they will eat anything green and suc- 
culent — foliage, flowers, buds, fruit, stalks, or roots, and sometimes 




Fig. 62. — Greasy cutworm {Agrotis 
ypsilon); a, larva; b, head of same; 
c, adult — natural size. (After How- 
ard, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



?iir— -: 



Fig. 63.— The dark-sided cut- 
worm {Agrotis messoria). (After 
Riley.) 



86 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



migrate to other fields in armies like the army worms. Some 
species commonly climb young fruit trees which have been planted 





Fig. 64. — Peridromia saucia: a, adult, b, c, d, full-grown larvJB, e, f, eggts; 
all natural size except e, which is greatly enlarged. (After Howard 
U. S. Dept. Agr ) 

on grassy land or which are allowed to grow in grass or weeds 

and are known as climbing cut- 
worms. Our common species are 
most in j urious to garden cropsand 
to corn, cotton, tobacco and simi- 
lar crops grown in hills or rows, 
small grains and forage crops be- 
being injured but 
rarely. 

Though over a 
score of species are 
common, it is not 
practicable to dis- 
tinguish them i n 
this discussion, and 
though their life 

Fig. 65. — The bronzed cutworm (Nephelodes minians Guen.): back and side, 
views of larva — enlarged, and moth — natural size. (After Forbes.) 




INSECTS AFFECTING GRAINS, GRASSES, ETC. 



87 



histories are somewhat different, they may be considered as a 
class. 

The adults are moths with dark fore wings, variously marked 
with darker or lighter spots and narrow bands as shown in 
Figs. 61-68, and with lighter hind-wings, which are folded over 
the back when at rest. Like the cutworms, they feed at night, 




Fig. 66. — Cutworm moths: h, the well-marked cutworm-moth (Nodua clan- 
destina Harris); the dingy cutworm (Feltia subgothica Haworth); male 
(m) and female (/) moths. (After Slingerland.) 

sipping the nectar from flowers, and are known as owlet 
moths. The females deposit their eggs in grass land or where 
a crop has been allowed to grow up in grass and weeds in late 
summer, laying them in patches on the stems or leaves of grasses 
or weeds, or on stones or twigs in such places. 

The little caterpillars which hatch from these eggs in August 
and September feed on the roots of whatever vegetation is avail- 
able until frost, going deeper as it approaches, and finally hollow 
out small cells, in which they curl up and hibernate until the next 



88 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

spring. The next spring they are exceedingly hungry after their 
long fast, and attack any vegetation at hand with surprising vorac- 
ity. If the land is in grass or weeds they have plenty of food, 
and if it is then plowed and planted in some crop, this will 
certainly be injured. 

The cutworms usually become full grown during late spring 
or early summer, and are then about 1^ to 2 inches long, of 
a dull brown, gray or blackish color, often tinged with green- 
ish, and more or less marked with longitudinal stripes, oblique 
dots and dashes, the markings usually being of a subdued 
tone, so that the cutworm harmonizes in color with the 
soil. They are cylindrical, with the head and prothoracic plate 
horny and reddish brown, and bear three pairs of jointed legs 




Fig. 67. — Moth of the glassy 
cutworm (Hadena devas- 
iairix Brace). (After 
Forbes.) 



Fig. 68. — Granulated cut-worm {Agrotis' 
annexa): a, larva; /, pupa; h, adult — 
natural size. (After Howard, U. S. 
Dept. Agr.) 



on the thorax and five pairs of prolegs on the abdomen. The 
mature caterpillars pupate in cells a few inches below the sur- 
face and in three or four weeks the adult moths emerge, usually 
in July and early August in the Central and Northern States 
and earlier farther south. 

Thus there is usually but one generation a year in the North 
while in the South there are commonly two generations and in 
some cases three. Though other stages than the larvae of 
various species are known to hibernate sometimes, nevertheless 
the worst injury is usually done in the spring, when young plants 
have just been set or are just appearing. 



INSECTS AFFECTING GRAINS. GRASSES ETC. 89 

Control. — It is evident from their life history that Hke the 
white grubs and wireworins, cutworms may be most effectually 
combated by plowing in late fall and again plowing and har- 
rowing thoroughly in early spring, so as to keep the land fallow 
and thus starve them out. Land which is to be planted in 
corn or crops subject to cutworm injury should be plowed as 
early as possible in late summer of the preceding year and kept 
fallow so that the moths will not deposit their eggs upon it, 
as they will if it is left in grass or weeds. 

Poisoned bran mash (see p. 57) is probably the best thing 
for destroying cutworms, and if well applied a few days before 
plants are set or a few days after seed is planted, will often 
protect crops on infested land. On corn land it may be applied 
with a seed drill, and in gardens an onion drill is sometimes 
used in the same way, placing the mash on the surface near 
the plants; or it may be applied by hand, placing a tablespoonful 
near each plant or every 2 or 3 feet in the row. Distribute 
the mash late in the afternoon, so that it will still be moist 
when the worms feed at dusk. Keep poultry away from fields 
so treated. Clover which has been thoroughly sprayed or dipped 
in water containing one-third pound Paris green per barrel may be 
used in the same way, particularly along the outside of fields 
to be protected from invasion or along borders of fields next to 
grass. 

Market gardeners frequently protect cabbage, tomato and 
similar plants by knocking the bottoms out of tin cans or making 
cylinders of building paper and placing these around the stems, 
sinking them into the soil. "^ Where cutworms assume the climbing 
habit and attack fruit trees, distribute the bran mash or poisoned 
clover liberally around the bases of the trees and put a band 
of tanglefoot around the trunk of each tree, which will prevent 
their ascent. Thorough cultivation of the orchard and neighbor- 
ing land will also reduce their numbers. When they assume the 
migratory habits of army worms, they may be controlled by the 
same methods as described for them. Garden plants may some- 
times be protected from cutworms, as well as flea beetles, by dip- 
ping them in arsenate of lead, 3 pounds per barrel, when planting. 



90 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



The Chinch-bug * 

The adult Chinch-bug is about one-fifth inch long, with a 
black body. Its white wings lie folded over each other on the 
abdomen, and are marked by a small black triangle on their 
outer margins, while the bases of the antenna3 and the legs are 
red. The young bugs are yellowish or bright red marked with 
brownish-black, becoming darker as they grow older. Along 
the Atantic coast and along the southern shores of the Great 




Fig. 69. — Areas in the United States over which the chinch-bug occurs in most 
destructive numbers. (After Webster, Dept, Aer., Farmer's Bulletin 
657.) 

Lakes north of a line from Pittsburg, Pa., to Toledo, Ohio, the 
majority of the adults have short wings reaching but half over the 
abdomen and are incapable of flight; but between the Alleghany 
and Rocky Mountains the long-winged form greatly predominates. 
It occurs also in restricted localities in Central America and 
along the Pacific coast. The worst injury is to small grains 
and corn in the Central and North Central States, but frequently 
injury is done, in the Eastern States especially, to timothy meadows 
which have stood for several years. Thoudi individually insig- 
* Blissus leucopterus Say. Family Lygoeidae. 



INSECTS AFFECTING GRAINS, GRASSES, ETC. 



91 



nijScaiit, when assembled in countless myriads chinch-bugs have 
doubtless been of greater injury to the farmers of the Mississippi 
Valley than almost any other insect attacking grain crops, the total 
damage from 1850 to 1909 being estimated at $350,000,000.* 

Life History. — During the winter the bugs hibernate in clumps 
of grass, in corn butts, and in old shocks of corn, or under what- 
ever rubbish is available. In early spring they assemble in 
fields of grass and small grains. Soon they pair and the females 
commence to lay their small yellowish-white eggs upon the 
roots or bases of the stalks, each laying some 150 to 200 eggs. 




Fig. 70. — The chinch-bug (Blissus leucopierus Say): adult at left; a, b, eggs 
magnified and natural size; c, young nymph; e, second stage of nymph; 
/, third stage; g, full-grown nymph or pupa; d, h, j, legs; i, beak through 
which the bug sucks its food. (After Riley.) 

The eggs are laid from t"he middle of April until the first of 
June, depending upon the latitude and weather, and hatch in 
two or three weeks. As the nymphs grow they often do serious 
injury to small grains and grass, upon which they become full 
grown about the time of harvest. When wheat is harvested 
they spread to oats and soon to corn, but, curiously enough, though 
the adults have wings they travel from field to field on foot, were it 
not for which fact we should be at a loss to cope with their migra- 
tion. Eggs are now laid upon the unfolding leaves of the corn, 
from which the nymphs commence to emerge in about ten days. 
This second brood matures on corn in August and September and 
is the one which later hibernates over winter, though where corn 
is not available the whole season may be passed on grass. 

* See Circular 113, Bureau Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr., F. M. Webster, 
and Headlee and McColloch, Kansas Expt. Sta. Bulletin No. 191. 



92 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Control. — The burning over of grass land, and the grass along 
fences, hedges, and roads, as soon as it becomes dry enough in 
late fall and early winter, is of prime importance to destroy 
the bugs after they have gone into hibernation. The removal 
of all corn stalks from the fields and plowing the butts under 




Fig. 71. — Seasonal cycle of the chinch-bug. (From Headlee and McCoUoch.) 

deeply, or where the bugs are very abundant, raking out the 
butts and burning them, will help rid the fields of the pest. 

It is practically impossible to combat the pest in the summer 
on grass or small grains, but its migration to corn or from field 
to field may be effectually checked. In dry weather a dust 
furrow may be used as a barrier to good advantage. Just before 
harvest plow a deep furrow around the field to be protected, 
or on the threatened sides, and thoroughly pulverize the soil by 







^^°" Z^'T^^""^®^® ^°r chinch-bugs, showing methods of construction. (U. S. 
L>. A. Bureau of Entomology.) 93 



3.^Dusty-f urrow. trap. 



94 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

dragging a heavy log back and forth in the furrow, making 
the side next the corn as steep as possible.* In attempting 
to climb this barriar, the dust will slide from under the bugs 
and large numbers will accmnulate in the bottom of the furrow, 
where they will be killed by the heat of the soil if it has a 
temperature from 110° to 120° (air temperature of over 90°). 
Keep the furrow clean by dragging a log through it now and 
then. Sink post-holes a foot deep every few feet in the bottom 
of the furrow and the bugs will collect in them and may be 
crushed or killed with kerosene. Such a dust furrow will be 
of no value in showery weather, and is most effective in hot dry 
weather on light soil; it may often be used to advantage in com- 
bination with the following methods. 

In place of the dust furrow or in combination with it, a strip 
of coal tar is often run around the field. The strip, which should 
be about the size of one's finger, can be made by pouring 
from a watering can with the mouth stopped down, and should 
be run inside the dust furrow and with post-holes sunk along 
its outer edge. Sometimes it is rmi in a zig-zag line with the 
holes at the inner angles so that the bugs will be concentrated 
at the holes. These tar strips must be freshened whenever dust 
or rubbish covers them. The soil may be prepared for the tar 
strip by plowing a back furrow and packing the top with a roller 
or beating it hard with spades; or a strip of sod may be prepared 
by scraping away the grass with a farm scraper and then smooth- 
ing carefully with shovels or hoes; or a dead furrow may be run 
and the tar strip run on the smooth bottom. To maintain such a 
tar strip for four weeks costs about $2 a mile and has proven 
itself entirely practical and effective. 

if the bugs have already become numerous in the outer rows of 
corn, most of them may be destroyed by spraying with kerosene 
emulsion (see p. 44) made to contain four per cent kerosene, apply- 
ing it in the early morning or towards night. It costs 65 cents a 
barrel diluted, and a man will spray five acres per day, using a 

. , * Such a furrow'^may possibly be made more readily by plowing several 
iurrows and harrowing the ground thoroughly until reduced to a fine mulch 
and then plowing a dead furrow through the middle, and then dragging this 
with a log, making the sides as steep as possible. With such construction 
the furrow will cost about five cents per linear rod. 



INSECTS AFFECTING GRAINS, GRASSES, ETC. 95 

barrel per acre. Whale-oil soap, one-half pound to the gallon of 
water, has proven equally effective and cost $2.00 per barrel. 

A blast torch, for which an attachment is furnished with 
many of the compressed-air sprayers, may be used to advantage 
for destroying the bugs in a dust furrow or along the tar line, 
or a spray of pure kerosene or crude petroleum may be used for 
the same purpose. 

Extensive experiments have been made in Illinois and Kansas 
with the use of the muscardine fungus * against the chinch-bug. 
Though occasionally the results seem to be profitable, and though 
it is undoubtedly effective in wet seasons and it may be well 
to distribute the fungus to places where it does not occur so 
that it may reduce the numbers of the bugs in wet seasons, it 
seems to be of very little value in dry seasons, when the injury 
is worst, and cannot be relied upon to check the increase of the 
pest when used according to the methods so far devised. 

When chinch-bugs become abundant and their migration to 
corn seems imminent, the farmer should prepare to devote himself 
and as many hands as necessary to fighting them until their 
advance is checked, for delay will mean ruin, while the prompt 
use of the above methods will save the corn crop. 

Grasshoppers or Locusts t 

Plagues of destructive locusts — or what we Americans call 
grasshoppers — have been recorded since the dawn of history. 
In America the worst devastation was done by the flights of 
the Rocky Mountain or Migratory Locust (Melanoplus spretus 
Thos.), which swooped down upon the States of the western 
part of the Mississippi Valley in the years 1873 to 1876 in destruc- 
tive clouds. 

The Rocky Mountain Locust 

Let us first consider the species which has been the most 
injurious, as the other locusts differ from it in but few essential 
points other than in being non-migratory. 

To understand correctly its habits the reader should first 

divide the area which this species affected into three parts. Of 

*Sporotrich um globuliferum. 

t Various species of the family Acrididoce. See W. R. Walton, Farmers' 
Bulletin 747, U. S. Dept. Agr. 



96 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

these (1) the Permanent Region, which included the highlands of 
Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado, formed the native breeding- 
grounds, where the species was always found in greater or less 
abundance;* (2) the Subpermanent Region, which included Man- 
itoba, the Dakotas, and western Kansas, was frequently invaded; 
here the species might perpetuate itself for several years, but 
disappeared from it in time; (3) the Temporary Region, which 
included the States bordering the Mississippi River on the west, 
was that only periodically visited and from which the species 
generally disappeared within a year. 

Spread — When for various reasons the locusts became excess- 
ively abundant in the Permanent Region they spread to the 
Subpermanent Region, and from there migrated to the Tem- 
porary feeding-grounds. It was the latter area which suffered 
most severely from their attacks, but, fortunately, they did 
not do serious injury the next year after a general migration. 
In the Subpermanent Region their injuries were more frequent 
than in the Temporary, but were hardly as severe or sudden as 
farther east. Migrating from their native haunts, flights of 
the grasshoppers usually reached southern Dakota in early sum- 
mer, Colorado, Nebraska, Minnesota, Iowa, and western Kansas 
during midsummer, and southeastern Kansas and Missouri 




Fig. 73. — Rocky Mountain locust; adult and different stages of growth of 
young. (After Riley.) 

during late summer, appearing at Dallas, Texas, in 1874, and aboiit 
the middle of October, and even later in 1876. As thus indi- 
cated, the flights were in a general south to southeasterly direction, 
while west of the Rockies they descended to the more fertile 
valleys and plains, but without any such regularity as eastward. 
While the rate of these flights was variable and entirely dependent 
upon local weather conditions, twenty miles per day was con- 
* Bull. 25, U. S. Dept. Agr., Div. Entomology. C. V. Riley. 



INSECTS AFFECTING GRAINS, GRASSES, ETC. 



97 



sidered a fair average. The flights were more rapid and more 
distance was covered in the early part of the season, when, while 
crossing the dry prairies, a good wind often enabled them to cover 
200 to 300 miles in a day. As they first commenced to alight in 
their new feeding-grounds their stay was limited to but two or 
three days, but later in the season it was considerably lengthened, 
and, after a section was once infested, swarms were seen to be 
constantly rising and dropping during the middle of the day. 

Life History. — Over all the infested area, and while still sweep- 
ing it bare of crops and vegetation, the females commence to lay 
their eggs, and continue to deposit them from the middle of August 
until frost. For this purpose '' bare sandy places, especially on 




Fig. 74. — Rocky Mountain locusts: a, a, a, females in different positions, 
ovipositing; h, egg-pod extracted from ground, with end broken open; c, 
a few eggs lying loose on ground; d, e, showed the earth partially removed, 
to illustrate an egg-mass already in place and one being placed;/, shows 
where such an egg-mass has been covered up. (After Riley.) 

high, dry ground, which is tolerably compact and not loose," are 
preferred. " IMeadows and pastures where the grass is closely 
grazed are much used, while moist or wet ground is generally 
avoided." 

In such places the female deposits her eggs in masses of about 
thirty. These are placed about an inch below the surface in 
a pod-like cavity, which is lined and the eggs are covered by a 
mucous fluid excreted during oviposition. From two to flve hours 
are required for this operation, and an average of three of these 
masses is deposited during a period of from six to eight weeks. 



98 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

As the time of ovipositing varies with the latitude, so the 
hatching of the eggs occurs from the middle or last of March 
in Texas till the middle of May or first of June in Minnesota 
and Manitoba. Until after the molt of the first skin, and often 
till after the second or third molt, the young nymphs are con- 
tent to feed in the immediate vicinity of their birth. When 
the food becomes scarce they congregate together and in 
solid bodies, sometimes as much as a mile wide, march across 
the country, devouring every green crop and weed as they go. 
During cold or damp weather and at night they collect under 
rubbish, in stools of grass, etc., and at such times almost seem 
to have disappeared; but a few hours of sunshine brings them 
forth, as voracious as ever. When, on account of the immense 
numbers assembled together, it becomes impossible for all to 
obtain green food, the unfortunate ones first clean out the under- 
brush and then feed upon the dead leaves and bark of timber- 
lands, and have often been known to gnaw fences and frame 
buildings. Stories of their incredible appetites are legion; a 
friend informs me that he still possesses a rawhide whip which 
they had quite noticeably gnawed in a single night! 

As the nymphs become full grown they are increasingly 
subject to the attacks of predaceous birds and insects, insect 
parasites, fungous and bacterial diseases, and are also largely 
reduced by the cannibalistic appetites of their own numbers. 
When the mature nymphs transform to adult grasshoppers and 
thus become winged, large swarms are seen rising from the 
fields and flying toward their native home in the Northwest. 
This usually takes place during June and early July in the North, 
and as early as April in Texas, so that it is frequently impos- 
sible to distinguish the broods of the temporary region from the 
incoming brood which has migrated from the permanent region. 
Although the eggs for a second brood are sometimes laid, these 
seldom come to maturity, and the species is essentially single- 
brooded. 

The Lesser Migratory Locust 

Besides the Rocky Mountain locust there is only one other 
species that truly possesses the habit of migrating, though to 
a far lesser extent, and which is therefore known as the Lesser 
Migratory Locust {Melanoplus ailantis Riley). It is considerably 




INSECTS AFFECTING GRAINS, GRASSES, ETC. 99 

smaller than its western relative and somewhat resembles the 
red-leggecl locust both in size and appearance. The species 
is very widely distributed, occurring from Florida to the Arctic 
Circle east of the Mississippi, and on the Pacific slope north of 
the fortieth parallel to the Yukon. The habits and life history 
of the species are in all essentials practically the same as the 
former species, except that they have no particular breeding- 
grounds. Injuries b}^ this grasshopper were first noticed in 
1748, almost seventy-five years before the first record of the 
Rocky Mountain locust, and since then it has done more 
or less serious damage in some part of tlie territory inhabited 

every few years. 

Non-Migratory Locusts 

There are several species of locusts which, though lacking 
the migratory habit, and thus being more easily controlled, 
often become so numerous as to do 
serious damage over limited areas. 
Both as regards the regions inhab- 
ited, and its habits, life history, the ^ „^ x^ , , , , 

^ ,, ' ^;^' Fig. 75. — Red - legged locust 

common Ked-legged Locust {Melan- (Melanoplus femur -ruhrum 
oplus femur-riibrumllsir.) hardly dif- Harr.). (After Riley.) 

f ers from the last species, and is often found in company with 
it. It is non-migratory, however, and though the damage it 
does is thus entirely local, it is often of considerable importance. 

Records of locust plagues in 
California date back as far as 
1722. Many of them were 
doubtless due to the California 
Devastating Locust (Melano- 
plus devastator Scud.), and in 
the last invasion of 1885 this 
species outnumbered all others 
seven to one. Resembling the 
last two species in size and 
markings, the habits and life 
Fig. 76. — The pellucid locust (Camnula history of this species are also 
pellucida Scud.). (After Emerton.) g^pposed to be similar tO them, 
though they have not as yet been thoroughly studied. 

Together with the last species the Pellucid Locust (Camniila 
pellucida Scud.) has been largely responsible for the losses occa- 




100 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



sioned by locusts in California, and has also been found in New 
England, but is not noted there as especially destructive. 

Our largest winged American Locust, the American Acridium 
(Schistocerca americana Scud.), is practically confined to the 
Southern States from the District of Columbia to Texas, and 
thence south through Mexico and Central America, being rarely 
found in the North. This species is essentially a tropical one, 
and has often been exceedingly destructive, being especially so 
in 1876 in Missouri, Tennessee North Carolina, Georgia, and 
southern Ohio. 

Considerably larger than the preceding species are the Dif- 
ferential Locust (Melanoplus differentialis Thos.) and the Two- 




Fig. 77. — The American acridium (Schistocerca americana Scud.). (After 

Riley.) 

striped Locust (Melanoplus bivittatus Scud.), of which the former 
is peculiar to the central states of the Mississippi Valley, Texas, 
New Mexico, and California, while the latter has a more extended 
range from Maine to Utah and as far south as Carolina and 
Texas. These two differ from the smaller species in laying 

only one or two masses of 
eggs, and the eggs of dif- 
ferentialis have often been 
found placed under the bark 
of logs, but otherwise their 
habits are very similar. 
The two-striped locust is 
characterized by two yel- 




FiG. 78. — The Two-striped locust (Mela- 
noplus bivittatus Scud.) . (After Riley. 



lowish stripes extending from the eyes along the sides of the 
head and thorax to the extremities of the wing-covers, and is' 
probably the species most commonly observed by the farmer. 



INSECTS AFFECTING GRAINS, GRASSES, ETC. 101 



The Differential Locust. — Throughout the Mississippi Valley 
from Illinois southward, the Differential Locust is one of the most 




Fig. 79. — The differential locust (Melanoplus differentials Thos.). (After 

Riley.) 

common and destructive grasshoppers, and is an excellent example 
of several of our more abundant and injurious species which have 
very similar habits. 




Fig. 80. — The southern lubber grasshopper (Dictyophorus reticulatus) : njTnph 
and adult, slightly enlarged. 

The little grasshoppers hatch about the middle of May, 
from eggs which were laid in the fall, though we have observed 

them in March in Central Texas, and 
are of a dusky brown color, marked 
with yellow. The head and legs are 
the most prominent feature of the 
young nymphs. During their sub- 
sequent growth they molt five times 
at intervals of ten days to two weeks, the relative size and ap- 
pearance of the different stages being shown in Fig. 82. 




Fig. 81. — Egg-mass of the 
differential locust — enlarged. 



102 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Fig. 
in 
all 



The hoppers become full grown 
bout the first of July. The 
adult is about 1| inches long, its 
wings expand 2| inches, and it 
is of a bright yellowish-green 
color. The head and thorax are 
olive-brown, and the front wings 
are of much the same color, with- 
out other markings, but with a 
brownish shade at the base; the 
hind-wings are tinged with green; 
the hind-thighs are bright yellow, 
especially below, with four black 
marks; the hindshanks are yellow 
with black spines and a ring of 
the same color near the base. 
The adults at once attack what- 
ever crops are available, often 
finishing the destruction of those 
injured by them as nymphs, but 
in a few days their appetites 
seem to become somewhat 
appeased and they com- 
mence to mate and wander 
in search of suitable places 
for laying the eggs. Rela- 
tively few eggs are laid in 
cultivated ground, the favor- 
ite places being neglected 
fields grown up in grass and 
weeds, the edges of culti- 
vated fields, private road- 
ways, banks of ditches and 
small streams, and pasture 
lands. Alfalfa land is a fa- 
vorite place for oviposition, 
and alfalfa is frequently 

^,?;;r~^y™P'^^ °^ *^® *^^^^^^*^^^ ^°^^^*^ seriously injured by this 
different stages (1 to 5) of growth — • tx • i i .^i i 

enlarged. species. It IS doubtless due 




INSECTS AFFECTING GRAINS, GRASSES, ETC. 



103 



to these egg-laying habits and the abundance of food on unculti- 
vated land that this species always increases enormously on land 
which has been flooded and then lies idle for a year or two. 




Fig. 83. — A Locust-mite (Trombidium locustarum): a, the larva as seen on 
locust's wing; c, male mite; d, female, the two latter appearing as when 
egg-destroyers — all greatly enlarged. (After Riley.) 

Most of the eggs are laid in August and early September. Each 
female deposits a single egg mass of about 100 eggs just beneath 
the surface of the soil. During this season the females may 
frequently be found with the abdomens thrust deep in the 
soil, as the process 
of egg-laying re- 
quires some time. 
The eggs are yellow 
and arranged irre- 
gularly in a mass 
which is coated 
with a gluey sub- 
stance to which the 
earth adheres, 
which protects 

them from variable -^ „. . „ ■ .. a t 

. Fig. 84. — Anmo?n?/ia egg-parasite, a, fly, o, puparium; 
conditions of mois- c, larva; d, head of larva. (After Riley.) 

ture and temperature. 

Enemies. — As before mentioned, large numbers of the nymphs 

are destroyed before reaching maturity by their natural enemies. 

Among these a minute fungus undoubtedly kills many of those 

already somewhat exhausted, especially during damp weather. 




104 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Almost all of our common bii'ds, as well as many of the smaller 
mammals, are known to feed quite largely upon them. 

A small red mite {Tronibidium locustarum Riley), somewhat 





Fig. 85. — ^Two tachina-flies. (Exorista Icucanice Kirk, and 
Riley.) (After Riley.) 



flavicauda 




resembling the common red spider infesting greenhouses, is 
often of great value not only in killing the nymphs by great 
numbers of them sucking out the life-juices of the young hopper, 
but also in greedily feeding upon the eggs. 

The maggots of several species 
of Tachina-flies are of consider- 
able value in parasitizing both 
nymphs and adult locusts. 
Their eggs are laid on the neck 
\[ of a locust, and, upon hatching, 
the maggots pierce the skin and 

Fig. 86.— Common flesh-fly {Sarco- jjyg inside by absorbing its juices 
phaga carnana Lmn.): a, larva; o, 

pupa; c, fly. Hair-lines show natural and tissues. When tuU grown 

size. _(After Riley.) the maggots leave the locust, 

descend into the earth, and there transform to pupae inside of their 

cast skins, and from the pupse the adult flies emerge in due time. 

The maggots of one of the Bee-flies {Systcechus oreas) feed 

upon grasshopper eggs, but their life history is not fully known. 

The common Flesh-fly (Sarcophaga carnaria Linn.), Fig. 86, is 

also very destructive, though largely a scavenger. 

But of all the insects attacking locusts, the Blister-beetles, 
which, unfortunately, are often known to us as very injurious 
to various garden crops, are probably of the most value. The 
female beetle deposits from four to five hundred of her yellov/ish 
eggs in irregular masses in loose ground, and in about ten days 



INSECTS AFFECTING GRAINS, GRASSES, ETC. 



105 



there hatch from these eggs some " very active, long-legged larvae, 
with huge heads and strong jaws, which rmi about everywhere 
seeking the eggs of locusts," Each of these larvae will consume 
one of the masses or about thirty eggs. The subsequent life his- 
tory of these insects is very complicated on account of their pecu- 
liar habits, but the various stages are shown in Fig. 87. 

Control. — As the eggs are usually laid in the ground in the 
fall, deep plowing in late fall or early spring effectuallv buries 




(^^c^o, ""^^ "-mj "'^wc -^"^^ 

Fig, 87. — Various stages of a blister-beetle (EpicatUa vittata). (After Riley.) 

them too deep for the young nymphs to emerge. On alfalfa 
land thorough disking is often used for the same purpose. 
Thorough harrowing in the fall so as to pulverize the soil for 
the depth of an inch will break up many of the egg masses, 
though it is not as sure a control as plowing them under. 

When the young emerge, they may sometimes be destroyed 
by burning over stubble, grass and rubbish where it is present 
in sufficient quantities, or by augmenting it with straw, which 
may be done to advantage on cold days when the nymphs are 
congregated in such shelter. If the surface of the ground is 
smooth and hard many may be killed by the use of a heavy 
roller, particularly in the morning and evening, when they are 
sluggish in their movements. Plowing a badly infested field 
in a square, working toward the centre so as to drive the young 
nymphs inward, will result in burying many of them in the furrows, 
and the last may be burned or trapped in holes as described 
below. Simple ditches 2 feet wide and 2 feet deep form 
effectual barriers for the young hoppers. The sides next to the 
crop to be protected should be kept finely pulverized by hauling 
a log or a brush of dead branches through the ditch. The ditch 
may be made as described for chinch-bugs and is handled in 
the same manner, the little hoppers drifting to the bottom of 
the ditch, where they are killed by the heat on a hot day or 




YiG. 88. — Two hopperdozers, tied together, at work. (After Lugger, Bull. 43, 
(Minn. Agr. Exp. Sta.) 

106 



INSECTS AFFECTING GRAINS, GRASSES, ETC. 107 

where they are caught in post-holes sunk every few feet in the 
bottom of the ditch. This method may be used to advantage 
in plots of corn, cotton, or garden truck which has already 
become infested, by running furrows around the field and occa- 
sionally through it, and then driving the young hoppers toward 
them, which may be readily done by a number of children armed 
with branches. Where ditches containing water are available 
the young hoppers may be very effectively destroyed by oiling 
the surface of the water with kerosene emulsion and then driving 




Fig. 89. — Hopperdozer with cloth back, showing construction. (After W. R. 
Walton, Farmers' Bulletin 747, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture.) 

them into the ditches, for even if they succeed in crawhng out 
they will succumb to the oil. 

In pastures, small grains or any crops permitting their use, 
immense numbers of the nymphs ma}^ be caught by the use 
of hopperdozers, which may be utilized where the use of poisoned 
bran would not be possible. The hopperdozer consists of a 
shallow pan containing water with a surface of kerosene, crude 
petroleum, or coal tar, which is sometimes used without water. 
The pan is mounted on runners or wheels and if larger than about 
3 feet square is usually provided with partitions to prevent 
slopping. The back and sides are high and sometimes are made 
of canvas. "A good cheap pan is made of ordinary sheet iron, 
8 feet long, 11 inches wide at the bottom, and turned up a foot 



108 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



high at the back and an inch high in front. A runner at each 
end, extending some distance behind, and a cord attached to each 
front corner, complete the pan. We have known of from seven 
to ten bushels of young locusts caught with one such pan in an 
afternoon. It is easily pulled by two boys, and by running 
several together in a row, one boy to each rope, and one to each 
contiguous pair, the best work is performed with the least labor." 
Larger pans are drawn or pushed by horses. The oil is best 
used on the surface of water, from which the insects are removed 
with a strainer, and any which hop out will die after having come 
in contact with the oil. 

Destroying the Adults. — The destruction of the winged insects 
is an entirely hopeless task, for, though even large numbers 




Fig. 90. — ^The Price oil-pan or hopperdozer, with partitions to prevent 
slopping. (After Riley.) 

are caught, so many will remain that the damage done the 
crops would be but very slightly diminished. One of the most 
promising means for preventing the swarms of winged migratory 
locusts from alighting in the fields is by a dense smudge, in 
which some foul-smelling substances are placed. Where strictly 
attended, and with favorable winds, this has often proved highly 
successful. To accomplish the best results farmers over an 
extensive area should combine in its use. 



INSECTS AFFECTING GRAINS, GRA.SSES, ETC. 109 

The South African Fungus. — In 1900 Professor Morgan made a 
test of a fungous disease which had been found to destroy large 
numbers of grasshoppers in South Africa, to determine whether, 
after starting it by artificial propagation, it would spread suffi- 
ciently to destroy any considerable number of locusts The 
weather was favorable, rains being frequent. Early in August 
it was found that " over the areas where the liquid infection 




Fig. 91. — Carolina locust killed by fungous disease. (Photo by Weed.) 

was spread diseased hoppers were abundant." "As many as 
a dozen dead grasshoppers could be found upon a single plant, 
and some upon nearly every weed on ditch-banks where grass- 
hoppers were numerous. From the centres of infection great 
areas had become inoculated, spreading even beyond the planta- 
tions first infected." The property upon which it was placed 
became thoroughly infected with the fungus. Strangely, though 
many other species of grasshoppers were abundant, only the 
differential locust was killed by it. Dr. Howard states that this 
disease has also spread and done effective work in Colorado. 
However, more recent experiments made by the writer in Texas 
gave only negative results, and it is doubtful if any reliance can 
be placed upon the artificial use of such fungous diseases for 
locust control. 

Poisoning. — A mash composed of bran, molasses, water, and 
some form of arsenic, flavored with fruit juice according to formula 
given on page 57, has been extensively used for grasshoppers 



110 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

especially during the outbreaks of more recent years in Kansas 
and neighboring states. Preparation of the poison is frequently 
under the direction of the county agent and the Experiment Station 
representatives and the distribution is a community or even a 
county problem, in some cases poisoning being required by local 
ruling. Tons of paris green have been used in a single county 
in one year during a serious outbreak and the result has well re- 
paid the expense and labor. A substitute which has been used 
considerably is the Criddle mixture, prepared by poisoning about 
100 pounds of fresh horse manure with one pound paris green 
and using it in the same manner as the bran mash. The poisoned 
bran mash is now regarded as the most effective means for the 
control of all grasshoppers which are commonly injurious. 

The Army Worm * 

Almost every year some locality reports serious injury to 
crops by armies of caterpillars, which have not been previously 
known for many years. This being the case the farmers are 

at a loss for means to combat 
them, and by the time the in- 
formation has been secured the 
pests have completed the damage. 
The Army Worm occurs through- 
out the United States east of the 
Rocky Mountains and lives in 
low, rank growths of grass, which 
form thenormal breeding-grounds. 
When from an abundance of such 
food, or through failure of the 
parasitesto prevent their increase, 
the caterpillars become over- 
Fig. 92.-Army-worm moth (Ctrp/^^^^ abundant, they assume the army 
limpuwcto), pupa, and eggs in natural ""^ ' '' J 

position in a grass-leaf. Natural habit and march en masse, con- 
size. (After Comstock.) suming all in their path. 
The next year their natural enemies will usually have them 
under control again and there will be but Httle damage, and then 
they will not be observed as injurious for a series of years, though 
the moths are always fairly common. 

* Cirphus unipuncta Haworth. Family Noduidoe. 





Fig. 93.— Army-worms at work on corn-plant. (After Slingerland.) 



Ill 



112 INSECT PESTS OF FARM. GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Life History. — In the North the moths appear early in June 
and the females lay the small yellowish eggs in rows of from 
ten to fifty in the unfolded bases of the grass leaves, covering 
them with a thin layer of glue. Over seven hundred may be 
deposited by one female, so that when the young caterpillars 
hatch, in about ten days, the progeny of a few moths might 
form a quite destructive army. The worms usually feed entirely 
at night, and thus whole fields will sometimes be ruined before 
they are discovered, though a few generally feed by day, as 
they all do in cloudy weather. The leaves and stalks of grains 
and grasses form their favorite food, the heads usually being 
cut off, but various garden crops are often seriously injured if 
they happen in their path. Though usually untouched, even 
clover is not exempt. In from three to four weeks the 
worms have become full grown and are then about 1| to 2 inches 
long, of a dark gray or dingy black color, with three nar- 
row, yellowish stripes above, and a slightly broader and 
darker one on each side, quite resembling cutworms, to 
which they are nearly related. They now enter the earth and 
transform to pupae, from which the adult moths emerge in about 

two weeks. These lay eggs 
for another brood of worms 
which appear m September, 
but are very rarely injuri- 
ous. The moths which de- 
velop from this last brood 
either hibernate over winter 
or deposit eggs, the larvsB 
from which become partially 
grown before cold weather 
and then hibernate. In 
either case the young larvai 
feed in the spring, not usu- 
ally doing much damage, 
pupate in May, and the 
moths of the first genera- 
tion appear in June as 
already described. Thus in 
the North there are three 





Fig. 94. — An army 
w o r m — a bout 
one-third en- 
larged. (After 
Chittenden, U. S. 
Dept. Agr.) 



Fig. 95. — a, head 
of fall army 
worm; b, head of 
army worm — 
enlarged. (After 
Chittenden, U. S. 
Dept. Agr.) 



INSECTS AFFECTING GRAINS, GRASSES, ETC. 



113 



broods a year, the young larvae usually hibernating, while in the 
South there may be as many as six generations, and the 
moths usually hibernate over winter and lay their eggs in the 
spring. 

The moths very often fly into lights and are among the com- 
monest of our plain " millers." The front wings are a clay or 
fawn color, specked with black scales, marked with a darker 
shade or stripe at the tips, and with a distinct spot at the centre, 
which gives the specific name unipunda. The hind-wings are 
somewhat hghter with blackish veins and darker margins. 

Enemies. — Were it not for other insects which pray upon the 
army-worm, the army habit would doubtless be more often 
assumed and we should have to deal with them more frequently. 
Ordinarily, however, the parasitic and predaceous insects hold 





Fig. 96. — The farmer's friend, the red-tailed tachina-fly (Winthemia 4-pustu- 
lata): a, natural size; b, much enlarged; c, army worm, on which fly 
has laid eggs, natural size; d, same, much enlarged. (After Slingerland.) 

them in check very efficiently and when an outbreak does occur, 
the later broods of the same season are often entirely destroyed by 
their insect enemies. Large numbers are always destroyed by the 
predaceous ground-beetles and their larvae (p. 13), but their 
most deadly enemies are the tachina-flies (p. 104) These lay 
from a dozen to fifty eggs on a caterpillar, and the maggots 
from them enter the body and absorb the juices and tissues of 
the host, thus soon killing it. When feeding at night the worms 



114 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

are ordinarily free from these parasites, but when the marching 
habit is assumed the flies swarm around them on cloudy days 
and before the next year they again have the remnants of the 
voracious army under subjection. Therefore, worms with the 
tachina-fly eggs on them (Fig. 95) should never be destroyed 
where avoidable. 

Control. — When detected, all efforts should be centred on 
keeping the worms out of crops not yet attacked and confining 
their injury to as small an area as possible. As a barrier to their 
progress, there is nothing better than a dust furrow made as 
already described for chinch-bugs (p. 92), two or three of which 
may be found necessary in cool weather or where a fine dust can- 
not be maintained 

Deep fall plowing and thorough harrowing will be effective 
against the hibernating larvse, as will the burning of all grass 
along ditches, fences, and spots where the larvse normally five. 

By thorough spraying, or perhaps better by dusting, a strip 
of the crop with Paris green or some arsenical, and liberally 
distributing poisoned bran mash (see p. 57), large numbers 
may be destroyed. Where they are massed in furrows they 
may be destroyed by spraying them with pure kerosene or crude 
petroleum. 

As in fighting chinch-bugs the army worm must be given 
immediate and conclusive combat if the loss of crops is to be 
prevented, for they move rapidly and destroy all in their path. 

The Fall Army Worm or Grass Worm * 

Though somewhat the same in its habits as the true army- 
worm, the Fall Army Worm is so called because it appears later 
in the season, the former species being rarely injurious after 
August 1st. It is also more omnivorous, for while the army- 
worm prefers grasses, and grains, the fall army-worm feeds 
upon a large variety of crops, includmg sugar-beets, cow-peas, 
millet, sweet potatoes, and many other forage and truck crops. 
In Nebraska and the Central West it is a serious pest of alfalfa 
and is called the Alfalfa Worm. It is also sometimes very de- 

* Laphjgma frugiperda S. and A. Family Noduidce. See Farmers' Bulletin 
752, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. Walton and Luginbill. 



INSECTS AFFECTING GRAINS, GRASSES, ETC. 115 



structive to lawns, as was the case in Chicago in 1899. The fall 
army-worm is more of a native of the Southern States, but 
occurs from Canada to the Gulf and west to the Rockies. 

At first glance the caterpillars have much the same general 
appearance as the army worm, but closer examination reveals 
marked differences. Along each side of the body is a longitudinal 
pitch-colored stripe, and along the middle is a yellowish-gray 
stripe about twice as wide, which includes four black dots on 
each segment. The caterpillars assume the habit of working 
in armies, but usually do not feed in such large numbers as the 
true army worms and thus are more difficult to combat. 

Life History. — The winter is passed in the pupal state, the 
pupae being about one-half 
inch long and being found 
in cells one-quarter to one- 
half an inch below the sur- 
face. The moths emerge in 
the spring and the females 
lay their eggs on grass in 
clusters of fifty or more, each 
mass being covered with the 
mouse-colored hairs from the 
body of the female. The 
eggs hatch in about ten 
days and the caterpillars are 
found during May and June. 
The complete life history of 
the insect has not been care- 
fully followed, but it seems 
probable that there are but 
two complete generations in 
the North, three generations in the latitude of central and 
southern Illinois and the District of Columbia, and four in the 
extreme South. In any event, the destructive brood of cater- 
pillars appears in August and early September. 

The parent moth is of a "general yellowish, ash-gray color, 
with the second pair of wings almost transparent, but with a 
purplish reflection. In extent of wings it measures about Ij 
inches, and when closed the length of the insect is about three- 




FiG. 97. — The fall army-worm: a, moth, 
plain gray form; h, fore wing of Pro- 
denia-like form; c, larva extended; d, 
abdominal segment of larva, side view; 
e, pupa; d, twice natural size, others 
enlarged one-fourth. (After Chittenden, 
U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



116 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

quarters of an inch. The front wings are mottled or marbled, 
especially near the central area, and usually there is visible 
a fine white line a short distance from the edge and parallel 
to it. The hind-wings have a fringe of darker hair as well 
as veins that contrast somewhat with the lighter portion " 
(Fig. 97). 

Control. — Deep fall plowing and thorough harrowing will 
break up the pupal cells and thus largely prevent the develop- 
ment of the spring brood of moths. In perennial crops like 
alfalfa thorough disking may be used and on lawns deep raking 
with a long-toothed steel rake will kill many of the pupae. In 
fields of young grain and on lawns many of the caterpillars may 
be killed by a heavy roller. When not present in too large 
numbers, the worms may be destroyed by spraying the food 
plants with Paris green, arsenate of lead or other arsenicals, 
or by the use of poisoned bran mash. When present in large 
numbers and the army habit is assumed they should be com- 
bated the same as the army-worm. 



CHAPTER VIII 

INSECTS INJURIOUS TO SMALL GRAINS * 

The Hessian Fly f 

The Hessian fly is much the most destructive of the insects 
attacking wheat, to which its injury is practically confined; 
for though it occasionally injures barley and rye, it has never 




Fig. 98. — ^The Hessian fly {Mayetiola destnictor): a, female fly; 6, flaxseed 
stage or pupa; c, larva; d, head and breast-bone of same; e, pupa; 
/, puparium; g, infested wheat-stem showing emergence of pupse and 
adults. (After Marlatt, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

been reared on other grains or grasses. Its name was received 
from the fact that it was first noticed on Long Island in 

* Mayetiola destructor Say. Family Cecidomyiidce. 

t See "The Principal Insect Enemies of Growing Wheat," C. L. Marlatt, 
Farmers' Bulletin No. 132, U. S. Department of Agriculture. 



117 



118 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



1779, near where the Hessian troops had landed three years before. 
It now occurs over the main wheat-growing area of the eastern 
United States between parallels 35° and 45° westward to the 100th 
meridian, on the Pacific coast, in Canada, and in many other parts 
of the world where wheat is grown. Not infrequently it destroys 
25 to 50 per cent of the whole crop in some localities, and it has 
been estimated that 10 per cent of the crop of the whole country 
is lost from its ravages. 

Life History. — The adult flies are little dark-colored gnats about 
one-tenth inch long, so small as to escape common observation. 
Each female lays 100 to 150 minute reddish eggs, one-fifteenth 

inch long, placing 
them in irregular 
rows of from three 
to five or more,* 
usually upon the 
upper surface of the 
leaves. In a few 
days these hatch 
into small, reddish 
maggots, which 
soon turn white, are 
cylindrical, about 
twice as long as 
broad and have no 
true head or legs. 
The fall brood mag- 
gots burrow be- 
neath the sheath of 
the leaf and its base, 
causing a slight en- 
largement at the point of attack, but in the spring they usually 
stop at one of the lower joints, in both instances becoming fixed 
in the plant, absorbing its sap and destroying the tissues. The 
first indications of the work of the maggots on winter wheat in 
the fall are the tendency of the plants to stool out, the dark 
color of the leaves and the absence of the central stems. Later 
many of the plants yellow and die. The spring maggots attack 
the laterals, or tillers, which have escaped the previous brood, 




Fig. 99. — The Hessian fly,fadult male — greatly en- 
larged. (After Marlatt, U. S.Dept. Agr.) 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO SMALL GRAINS 



119 



so weakening them that the stems break and fall before ripening 
and cannot be readily harvested. 

About four weeks after hatching the maggots are full grown, 
and are greenish-white and about three-sixteenths inch long. The 

skin then turns brown, 
shrivels slightly, and 
inside it is formed the 
pupa. This outside 
case, composed of the 
cast larval skin, is 
known as the "pupa- 
rium," and this stage 
is commonly called the 
"flaxseed" from the 
resemblance to that 
seed. In this stage 
most of the fall brood 
passes the winter, the 
flies emerging in April 
or May, while the 
summer brood remains 
in the "flaxseed" stage 
in the stubble during 
the late summer and 
emerges when the first 
wheat is planted in the 
fall, emerging later far- 
ther south. 

Several species of 
small chalcis flies (page 
19) parasitize the larvae 
and pupae and were it 
not for their assistance 
it would doubtless be difficult to raise wheat. As yet no prac- 
tical method of increasing their abundance has been devised, 
though colonies have been carried to regions where they were scarce. 
Cofitrol. — The principal means of avoiding injury by the Hes- 
sian fly in the winter wheat regions is late planting in the fall. 
Inasmuch as the flies appear within ^about a week and then dis- 




FiG. 100. — "Flax-seeds" or puparia of the Hes- 
sian fly on young wheat — enlarged. (After 
Pettit.) 



120 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCAHRD 



appear, if planting be delayed until after that time, but little of the 
wheat will be injured. Dry weather in late summer and early 
fall will delay the appearance of the flies, even with normal tem- 
perature conditions, and the further south, the later they appear. 
From experiments being conducted by the U. S. Bureau of Ento- 
mology, Professor F. M. Webster states that the following dates will 
probably be found safe for sowing wheat in average seasons: in 
northern Michigan soon after the 1st of September; in southern 
Michigan and northern Ohio, about September 20th; in southern 
Ohio after the first week in October; in Kentucky and Tennessee, 
October 10th to 20th; in Georgia and South Carohna, October 
25th to November 15th. The exact time will also depend upon 
altitude as well as latitude. 

A rotation of the wheat crop compels the flies when they emerge 
from the stubble to travel in search of the young wheat plants. 
Should storms or heavy winds occur, the frail little flies will be de- 
stroyed in large numbers, whereas if they found wheat immedi- 
ately available the mortality woifld be small. 



W 





Fig. 101. — Hessian fly: a, egg, greatly enlarged; h, section of wheat-leaf 
showing eggs as usually deposited — less enlarged; c, larva; d, pupa 
taken from puparium or "flaxseed" — e, c, d, e, much enlarged. (After 
Webster and Marlatt, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

Inasmuch as most of the spring brood remain in the stubble 
in the flaxseed stage after harvest, if the fields be then burned 
over, large numbers will be destroyed. This may be done by cut- 
ting the grain rather high at harvest, and then mowing the weeds 
and grass and allowing them to dry a few days before burning. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO SMALL GRAINS 121 

Unfortunately this practice is often impossible, owing to the prac- 
tice of seeding wheat land to grass and clover. 

As early volunteer plants always become badly infested and the 
pupae wintering on them give rise to a spring brood which attacks 
the main crop, all volunteer plants should be destroyed by plowing 
or disking before the larvae have matured. This principle has some- 
times been utilized in the form of a trap crop, strips of wheat being 
sown early so as to attract the flies and then being plowed under 
after the bulk of the eggs had been laid upon them, thus protecting 
the main crop, planted later. 

The enrichment of the soil, the preparation of a good seed bed, 
and the use of good seed, so as to secure a vigorous growing crop, 
are all of the greatest importance in overcoming injury by the 
Hessian fly. After the crop is once attacked, no truly remedial 
measures are known except to apply liberally some quick-acting 
fertilizer which will cause the plants to tiller freely and give them 
suflScient vigor to withstand the winter and thus increase the 
healthy stems the next spring. 

Of late years the practice in some of the principal wheat growing 
states, notably in Kansas, has been to plow the wheat stubble 
under deeply, destroy all volunteer plants and to roll or pack 
in some manner the soil in the plowed fields so that the adult 
flies will be unable to make tlieir escape from the buried pupae. 
This is recommended as the best means of control but may well 
be practiced along with sowing after the "fly-free" date as deter- 
mined for the region in question. 

Some work with immune or partially immune varieties is in 
progress but no results of a definite nature have been announced. 

Keeping the soil in first class condition and practicing rotation 
and other matters of the best farming practice will help to keep the 
damage from the fly from being so serious during any season as 
it might otherwise have been. 

The Wheat Joint-worm * 

For the last sixty years the joint- worm has been known as 

a serious pest of wheat throughout the wheat-growing region 

east of the Mississippi River, the damage varying from a 

* Harmolita tritici Fitch. Family Chalcididce. 

See W. J. Phillips, U. S. Dept. Agr. Bulletin 808, and Farmers' Bui-" 
letin 1006. J 



122 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



slight injury which is hardly noticeable, and which may escape 
observation for several years, to an almost total infestation of 
the crop. 

The adults appear in April, May, or early June, according to the 
latitude, and are small black, four-winged flies about one-eighth 
inch long, with the joints of the legs and feet yellow. They look 
something lilce small, winged black ants (Fig. 102) and curiously 
enough belong to a family whose members are almost all parasitic 
on other insects, so that before they had been thoroughly studied 
they were thought to be parasites of the Hessian fly. The females 
lay their eggs in the stems, generally selecting the uppermost 

joints that have ap- 
peared at that time. 
" The young worms 
develop rapidly, each 
in a little cavity within 
the straw. Often 
knots, swellings, and 
twistings occur in the 
straw at the point of 
infestation; again 
there is little sign of 
the insect's presence 

Fig. 102. — a, wheat-straw affected by joint-worm; except a slight discol- 
h, adult as seen from above. (After RUey.) ^^.^^-^^ ^^ ^ ^^^j^ ^^_ 

viation of the fibres and grooves of the straw from their natural 
course. When the infested section is split with a knife it is found 
to be brittle and woody in character, and contains from 3 or 4 
to 20 or more yellowish larvse, about one-eighth inch long when 
full-grown. These larvae remain in the straw until the following 
spring, when they issue as adults and commence again the life 
cycle in the new crop. The damage is done by the worms cut- 
ting off the sap supply from the head, causing it to become 
shortened, containing comparatively few kernels, and such 
kernels as develop are apt to be small and shriveled from lack 
of nourishment. Also because of the brittleness of the straw high 
winds are apt to break much of it down." — Gossard. 

The presence of the pest is always indicated at threshing by 
short, hard bits of straw, containing the larvae, which are carried 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO SMALL GRAINS 



123 



out with the grain instead of going over in the straw. It has 
Usually been considered necessary to separate and burn these, 
but Professor F. M. Webster finds that the larvse in them are 
probal)ly killed in threshing, as he has been unable to rear 




z^m^^' 




Fig. 103. — Swellings made by wheat joint-worms in straw — enlarged. (After 

Pettit.) 

adults of either the joint-worm or its parasites from such bits of 
straw. 

Control. — A rotation of the wheat crop is of prime impor- 
tance in the control of this pest, and where wheat is not planted 
on the same land 
and is sown as far 
from that of the 
previous year as 
possible there will be 
but little damage. 
It is obviovis that 
the stubble should 
be plowed u n d e r 
where possible, or 
burned during the 
late fall or winter. 
Cut infested grain 
as low as possible 
so as to remove the 
larvse in the straw. 




Fig 1U4- — vv neat straw-worn : adult of fall genera- 
tion, much enlarged. (After Howard, U. S. 
Dept. Agr.) 



Where the stubble cannot be burned, break 
it down by haiTOwing in the spring and then collect with a hay- 



124 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



rake and burn. Prepare the seed bed thoroughly and fertihze well, 
when injury is expected, so as to ensure a strong growth and 
early ripening. Green manure containing infested straw should 
not be scattered on land to be used for wheat, and all infested 
straw which has not been used up by April should be burned. 

The Wheat Straw-worm * 

" The Wheat Straw- worm," says Professor F. M. Webster, " sus- 
tains the same relation to winter-wheat culture west of the Miss- 
issippi River that the joint-worm does to the cultivation of this 
cereal east of this river. Both, when excessively abundant, 
occasion losses from siight to total. A wheat stem attacked 
by the joint-worm may produce grain of a more or less inferior 
quality and less of it; but the spring attack of the wheat straw- 
worm is fatal to the plant affected, as no grain at all is produced, 
and while the second generation of the same has a less disastrous 
effect in the field, it nevertheless reduces the grade and weight 




Fig. 105. — Wheat straw-worm a, ventral view; b, side view of larva; c, 
antenna?; d, mandible; e, anal segment, ventral view; /, adult female; 
g, fore-wing; h, hind-wing; i, aborted wing. (After Riley.) 

of the grain." Though the straw-worm occurs over much of 
the same territory in the East as the joint-worm, it is rarely so 
injurious. 

Life History and Description. '\ — " There are two generations 

* Harmolita grrandzs' Riley. Family Chalcididm. 
See W. J. Phillips, U. S. Dept. Agr. Bulletin 808. 

t From Circular 106, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr., by F. M. 
Webster and Geo. I. Reeves. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO SMALL GRAINS 



125 



of the insect annually, the adults of the first generation differing 
considerably in appearance from those of the second. To the 
farmer they will all look like minute or large, shining black ants, 
with or without wings, their legs more or less banded with yellow, 
and having red eyes. Individuals of the first generation emerge 
in April from the outstanding straws and stubble. They are 
very small, most of them are females, and many are wingless. 
The females deposit their eggs in the young wheat plants, the 
stems of which at this time extend but little above the sur- 
face of the ground. The egg is placed in or just below the 
embryonic wheat head and the larva or worm works within 
the stem, usually causing a slight enlargement. When the 
worm is full grown it will be found in the crown of the plant, 
having eaten out and totally destroyed the embryonic head, 
its body occupying the cavity thus formed. 

'' The females which deposit these eggs, being small and fre- 
quently wingless, are in no way fitted for traveling long dis- 
tances, The larva or worm is of a very light straw color, indeed 
almost white, with brown jaws. These worms develop very 
rapidly and, as they feed rMMli c' 

on the most nutritious part 
of the plant, they become 
robust and larger than 
those found in the mature 
straw in late summer. In 
May the larvse become full 
grown and pass at once 
through a short pupal 
stage. The pupse are at 
first the same color as the 
larvae, but later change to 
a shining jet black, 
a few days the fully devel- 
oped insects gnaw circular 
holes through the walls of 
the stem and make their 
way out. These adults are much larger and more robust than 
the individuals of the first generation and arc provided with 
fully developed, serviceable wings. That they make good use of 





Jjj Fig. 106. — The wheat straw-worm: method 
of oviposition of female of summer form: 
a, female inserting her eggs; />, section 
of wheat stem, showing egg; c, and 
ovipositor, d; c, egg, greatly magnified. 
(After Riley and Webster, U. S. Dept. 
Agr.) 



126 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



their wings, and scatter themselves about over fields adjacent to 
their place of development, is shown by their occmrence in fields 
of grasses (in the stems of which they do not breed) situated 
considerable distances from wheat fields. In ovipositing, the 
females of this generation select the largest and most vigorous- 
growing stems in wliich to place their eggs. 

" The adults of the second generation deposit their eggs 
from early May, in Texas, up to the middle of June, in northern 
Indiana, or about the time the wheat is heading. Their aim 
at this time is to place the eggs singly in the growing stem, 
just above the youngest 
and most succulent joints, 
which are not so covered 
by the enfolding leaf 
sheaths as to be inaccessi- 
ble to them. Thus it is 
that the stage of advance- 
ment in the growth of the 
wheat stem at the time of 
oviposition of the summer 
generation of females 
determines whether the 
larvse will be well upward 
in the straw, and there- 
fore removed after har- 
vest, or lower down and 
consequently left in the 
field in the stubble. 

"The method of ovi- 
position and the point 
where the egg is usually 
formed is shown in Fig. 
103. The larva forms no Fig. 107.— "\ 
gall, nor does it harden 
the stem within which it 
develops. There is nor- 
mally but one larva in each joint; but if several eggs have been 
placed between joints and produce larvse there will be one in the 
centre of the stem just above the joint and others in the walls just 




-Wheat straw-worm, showing 
point where female of the spring form 
deposits the egg in young wheat in early 
spring. Enlarged showing position of egg 
at right. (After Webster, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO SMALL GRAINS 



127 



under the internal wall-covering or inner epidermis. These larvae 
in the walls of the straw do not, as a rule, kill the stem, but 
their effect is to curtail the yield by reducing the weight. The 
larvse develop rapidly and reach their full growth before the 
straw has hardened. By October, in the Middle West, though 
earlier in the South, they pass into the pupal stage, in which, as a 
rule, they remain until early spring, whereupon they develop to 
adults and gnaw their way out." In the Northwest, where both 
winter and spring wheat are grown, the injury is particularly 
severe to spring wheat, as the adults 
of the second generation from winter 
wheat oviposit upon it while it is 
still young and ruin it in much the 
same way as the first generation does 
on the winter wheat in spring. Vol- 
unteer plants which carry the pest 
over winter have the same effect in 
increasing the injury to spring wheat. 
Control. — A rotation of crops 
which will eliminate the growing of 
wheat two years in succession on the 
same land is by all means the most 
successful and practicable means of 
control. The adults of the first gene- 
ration are very small and largely 
wingless ;,they are unable to migrate Fig. 108.— The wheat saw-fly borer 

far, so that rotation is exceedingly {Cephus vygmmusUnn)-\a, out- 
' . . ° -^ hne of larva, natural size; o, 

efficacious, though it should be larva, enlarged ;c, larva in wheat- 
planned SO that wheat is not planted 
next to stubble land, for the edge 
will become infested by the first gene- 
ration, and the second generation 
will then become distributed throughout the field. The burn- 
ing of stubble and outstanding straw will be advantageous 
wherever practicable. Clean fallowing in early summer and the 
abandonment of spring-wheat culture will reduce injury in the 
Northwest. 




stalk, natural size; d, frass; e, 
adult female; /, P achy oner us cal~ 
citrator, female, a parasite — en- 
larged. (After Curits, from 
"Insect Life.'') 



128 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Saw-Flies Attacking Wheat * 

Several members of the Hymenopterous family commonly 
called saw-flies, are occasionally found feeding on wheat but 
scarcely deserve to be ranked as pests. One of these is the Wheat 
Saw-fly Borer, t and another is called the Western Grass-stem 
Saw-fly. t 

The former is an importation from Europe while the latter is a 
native insect and is more common in the Northwest than in the 
Eastern States. 

Both species bore in the stems of wheat and some other grass 




Fig.' 109. — The western grass-stem saw-fly {Cephus occidentalis) : a, larva; 
b, female saw-fly; c, grass-stem showing work; c, enlarged, a, b, more 
enlarged. (After Marlatt, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

plants. Eggs are laid in the stem and a single larvae develops 
and feeds within the stem until full grown when it pupates with- 
in the part of the stem which is underground and there spends 
the winter. The adults appear about May. 

Remedies. — Rotation of crops, burning of stubble and plowing 
the stubble under deeply are the remedies suggested, should any 
be needed on account of the serious increase of the pests. 

* Family Tenthredinido'. 
t Cephus pygma'us I.inn. 
t Cephus occidentalis, Riley and Marlatt. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO SMALL GRAINS 



129 



Other species of saw-flies feed on the leaves and even on the 
heads of wheat. They, like the stem-borers, are rarely abundant 

enough to be trouble- 
some. Among these are 
two species called merely 
wheat saw-flies (Dolerus 
arvensis Say and Dolerus 
collaris Say). These 
species occur throughout 
the United States and 
southern Canada, east of 
the Rockies. These saw- 
flies are fairly large, com- 

pared with the ones pre- 

FiG. 110. — A wheat saw-fly (Dolerus arvensis . , 

Say) : female— much enlarged. (After Riley Viously discussed. The 
and Marlatt, U. S. Dept. Agr.) adults appear as dull 

black or bluish four-winged flies, marked inconspicuously with 





Fig. 111. — The grass saw-fly {Pachynemalus exterisicornis Norton): a, a, eggs 
on wheat-blade; b, young larva?; c, full-grown larva; d, cocoon from 
which adult has emerged; e, f, adult insects — e, male;/, female, a and 
b, natural size; c-f, enlarged. (After Riley and Marlatt, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



130 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

reddish or yellow. The larvae are grayish above and lighter 
beneath and reach a length of about a half-inch. They appear 
like any common small caterpillar but on examination will be 
found to have eleven pairs of legs in place of the eight pairs found 
on the caterpillars. 

A third species, more common than any of the others is the 
Grass Saw-fly, (Pachynematus extensicornis Norton), The adults 
of this species do not differ markedly from the others but the larvae 
became larger and are green or yellowish-green in color and have 
only ten pairs of legs in place of the eleven pairs found in the 
former species. 

Adults of all these forms appear rather early in the spring and 
larvse feed on the wheat, then in mid-summer go into the ground 
and remain there as larvse until early the next spring. They 
may possibly be destroyed in this situation by deep plowing, 
which would prevent the escape of the adults. So far, injury 
has not been extensive enough to call for treatment. 

Some Wheat-maggots 

Very similar to the Hessian fly in its mode of injuring the 
wheat-stalk is the Wheat-stem Maggot (Meromyza americana 
Fitch). The adult flies were first described by Dr. Fitch in 1856, 
though the work of the maggots had probably been noticed as 
early as 1821 by James Worth of Bucks County, Pa., and by the 
Michigan Farmer in Michigan about 1845. 

Extending from Dakota and Manitoba to Texas, the range 
of this insect practically covers all the eastern United States and 
southern Canada. 

Unlike the Hessian fly it feeds and breeds upon wild grasses and 
is thus much more difficult to control. Prof. A. J. Cook found 
the larvae in both barley and oats in Michigan, Prof. F. M. Webster 
reared an adult from blue grass (Poa pratensis), and Dr. Jas. 
Fletcher records it as breeding in Agropyrum, Deschampsis, Elymus, 
Poa, and Setaria viridis in Canada. 

Life History. — Like the Hessian fly the adult flies lay their 
eggs on fall wheat in September and October, and the young 
maggots when hatched work their way down into the stem, either 
cutting it off or causing it to discolor or die. The eggs are about 
one-fortieth of an inch long and of a glistening white color. The 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO SMALL GRAINS 



131 



larvse are a light greenish color, about one-fourth of an inch long 
tapering toward the terminal end while subcylindrical posteriorly, 
being quite elongate. The pupae are the same color as the larva?, 
but more rounded, being only one-sixth of an inch long, and reveal 
the legs and wing-cases of the imago forming within them. The 
external case of the pupa, called the puparium, is merely the 
shrunken and hardened cast skin of the last larval stage, 
within which the insect transforms to the pupa. The fly is 
about one-fifth of an inch long. It is of a yellowish-white 
color with a black 
spot on the top of the 
head, three broad 
black stripes on the 
thorax, and three on 
the abdomen, which 
are often interrupted 
at the sutures, so 
that they form dis- 
tinct spots. The 
eyes are a bright 
green. 

The winter is pass- 
ed by the larvae in the 
young plants and in 
spring they trans- 
form to pupae and 
adult flies. These in 
turn deposit eggs in 
such a position that 
the maggots issuing from them may readily feed upon the succulent 
portions of the growing stalk. Numerous larvae thus sapping the 
life of the plant soon kill it outright or cause the top and head to 
wither and die. The adults of this brood emerge in July and lay 
eggs on volunteer wheat and grasses, the maggots working in the 
same manner as in the fall and coming to maturity so that 
another brood of flies lays eggs for the fall brood on the newly 
planted wheat. 

Owing to the fact that this insect breeds also in grasses dur- 
ing late summer it is much more difficult to combat than were it 
confined to wheat as its food-plant, as is the Hessian fly. 




Fig. 112. — Wheat bulb-worm (Meromyza ameri- 
cana): a, mature fly; h, larva; c, puparium; 
d, infested wheat-stem — all enlarged except d. 
(After Marlatt, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



132 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



MMM 



-filiii^il^ftfe 



Remedies. — "If the grain is stacked or threshed and the 
straw stacked or burned," says Professor Webster/' it is clear that 
the number escaping would be greatly reduced," for, as the 
adults emerge soon after harvest, they would escape to deposit 
their eggs were the straw left in the fields, but "it is not likely 
that those in the centre of the stacks would be able to make 
their way out, and the threshing-machine would destroy many 
more. How much could be accomplished by late sowing of grain 
is uncertain, as the females are known to occur abundantly up to 
October. If plots of grain were sowed immediately after harvest 
in the vicinity of the stacks, many of the females could, no doubt, 
a be induced to deposit 

IMiiiiHiiHMMHpMpHMIPM^ eggs therein, and 

J^^I^J^gpJgl^ these could be destroyed 
by plowing under." 
Burning of the stubble 
will also aid in keeping 
this pest under control. 
There are several 
undetermined species of 
flies belonging to the 
genus Oscinis , which 
have practically the 
same life history as the 
wheat stem-maggot and 
injure the wheat in the 
same manner. They 

Fig. 113.— The American frit-fly (OsamsmriaftiZzs ^^^y closely resemble 
Loew): a, larva or maggot; 6, puparium;c, adult the common house-fly 
fly. (After Garman.) -^^ miniature, being 

about one-fourth as large. They will not need consideration by 
the practical farmer other than in applying methods of control 
as already given. One species of this genus, determined by Pro- 
fessor H. Garman as Oscinis variabilis Loew and christened the 
American Frit-fly, has been found common in Kentucky and 
Canada, but in the larval stage is so nearly identical in appear- 
ance and habit with the stem-maggot that it can with difficulty 
be distinguished from it. 

That these pests do not do more injury is probably due, to a 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO SMALL GRAINS 



133 



considerable extent, to the fact that large numbers of them are 
destroyed by a small hymenopterous parasite, known as Coelinus 
meromyzoe Forbes, which very commonly infests the larvae, and 
by other parasites and predaceous insects. 

Rarely will these pests do serious damage, but very often 
it is sufficient to merit consideration, and only a knowledge of 
their life history can give a key to their successful control. 



The Wheat-midge * 

History. — While the Hessian fly attacks the stalk of the 
wheat-plant, another species of the same family, known as the 




Fig 114. — Wheat-midge {Diplosis tritici): a, female fly; h, male fly; c, larva 
from below. (After Marlatt, U. S. Dept. Agr.) _ 

Wheat-midge, or "Red Weevil," often does very serious damage 

to the maturing head. It, too, is a foreigner, having first been 

noticed as injurious in Suffolk, England, in 1795, though probable 

references to its depredations date back as early as 1741. "In 

' Ellis's Modern Husbandman ' for 1745 the attacks of the vast 

numbers of black flies (the ichneumon parasites) are noticed 

in the following quaint terms: 'After this we have a melancholy 

sight, for, as soon as the wheat had done blooming, vast numbers 

of black flies attacked the wheat-ears and blowed a little yellow 

maggot which ate up some of the kernels in other parts of them, 

and which caused multitudes of ears to miss of their fulness, acting 

* Diplosis tritici. Family Cecidomijiidce. See Bulletin No. 5, Vol. I, 2d 
Ser., Ohio Agr. Exp. Sta., F. M. Webster. 



134 ' INSECT PESTS^OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

in some measure like a sort of locust, till rain fell and washed them 
off; and though this evil has happened in other summers to the 
wheat in some degree, yet if the good providence of God had not 
hindered it they might have ruined all the crops of wheat in the 
nation.' (Hind's ' Essay on Insects and Diseases Injurious to 
Wheat Crops,' page 76)". It seems probable that it was first 
introduced into America near Quebec, where it " appears to have 
occurred" in 1819, and was first observed in the United States 
in northwestern Vermont in 1820. It did not become very 
destructive, however, until 1828, from which time until 1835 
it kept increasing in such numbers as to cause the abandonment 
of the wheat crops in some localities throughout northern New 
England. Serious damage was reported as due to this pest 
every few years until about 1860, being most severe in 1854, in 
which year Dr. Fitch estimated the loss in New York alone at 
$15,000,000, and in 1857, and 1858. Since then no widespread 
injury has occurred, though local outbreaks are frequent, and 
it has spread south to the Gulf States and westward to Iowa, 
Minnesota, and Arkansas. 

Life History. — The adult flies are small, two-winged insects, 
about an eighth of an inch long, of a yellow or orange color. 
They appear about the middle of June and lay the eggs "in a 
small cavity at the summit of, and formed by a groove in, the 
outmost chaff covering the incipient kernel." They hatch in 
about a week, according to Dr. Fitch, and the maggots burrow 
into the forming kernels. The maggots are of a reddish color, 
and when an ear is badly infested give it a reddish tinge, on 
account of which the insect is often called the "red weevil." 

When full grown the larvse enter- the ground and usually 
form cocoons, in which they pass the winter in the pupal stage, 
though they often hibernate without such protection. Though 
doubtless there is usually but one brood in a season, observations 
by Professor F. M. Webster and others seem to point to the fact 
that there sometimes are two broods, as adults have been observed 
from August into November. 

Besides wheat, the wheat-midge also sometimes injures 
rye, barley, and oats. 

Remedies. — Plowing infested fields in the fall so deeply that 
the midges will be unable to reach the surface upon developing 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO SMALL GRAINS 



135 



in the spring is by far the best means of controlHng this pest, 
while burning the stubble previous to plowing, and a rotation 
of the crop, will also be of considerable aid. 




The English Grain-louse * 

The most common plant-louse affecting wheat and other small 
grains is a large green species which is always to be found on 
wheat plants, but which occasionally increases very rapidly, and 
clustering on the ripening 
heads sucks the juices so 
as seriously to injure the 
quality and weight of the 
wheat. 

In the North the first 
individuals are found on 
young wheat in April, 
though during open win- 
ters they may be found 
on the plants, and in the 
South they continue to 
reproduce during most of 
the winter in open sea- 
sons. The aphids feed 
upon the leaves until the 
grain commences to 
head, when they assem- 
ble on the heads among the ripening kernels. The females give 
birth to live young, bearing from 40 to 50 each, which become 
full grown in ten days to two weeks, and then reproduce, as is the 
usual method of reproduction with plant-lice (see page 390), so that 
they multiply with great rapidity, and where so few were present 
as to be hardly noticeable, in a few weeks they will be swarming 
over the heads in myriads. As the small grains ripen they migrate 
to various grasses and are not much in evidence during midsummer, 

* Macrosiphum granaria Buckton. Family Aphididoe. A nearly related 
species, Macrosiphum cerealis Kaltenbach, has very similar habits, is commonly 
associated with the species, and has not been distinguished from it by most 
writers. It may be recognized by lacking the blackish markings on the 
abdominal segments. See Pergande, Bulletin 44, Bureau of Entomology, 
U. S. Dept. Agr. 



Fig. 115. — The German grain aphis(Macro- 
siphum cerealis Kalt) : a, winged migrant 
6, nymph of same; c, wingless partheno- 
genetic female; d, same showing exit hole 
of parasite — enlarged. (After Riley, U. 
S. Dept. Agr.) 



136 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



but later migrate to volunteer oats and wheat, upon which they 
subsist until fall wheat is available. Owing to the cool weather 
of fall and the fact that but few individuals survive the attacks 
of their parasites during the summer, they rarely become abundant 
enough to do any damage to grains in the fall. So far as known, 
they hibernate over winter among the leaves of the growing plants, 
enough surviving both snow and cold to 
infest the crop the next spring. Whether 
true males and females produce eggs on 
the grain is unknown, for though they have 
been reared under artificial conditions, 
they have never been observed in the field. 





Fig. 1 16. — Grain a p h i d s 
clustered on wheat head, 
greatly enlarged. (After 
Weed.) 



Fig. 117. — ^Wheat-louse parasite (Aphidius 
avenaphis Fitch), and parasitized louse 
from which it has issued. (Copied from 
J. B. Smith.) 



Professor F. L, Washburn observed at least fourteen generations 
up to November 8, 1907, in southern Minnesota. 

As with other aphids, both winged and wingless individuals 
occur throughout the season. The wingless individuals are 
about one-tenth inch long, with black antennae as long as, or longer 
than the body, are of a yellowish-green color, often slightly 
pruinose, and long black nectaries extend from either side of the 
abdomen. The winged individuals are about the same length, 
with a wing expanse of about three-eighths inch, with antennae 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO SMALL GRAINS 137 

a third longer than the body, and are of the same general colora- 
tion except that lobes of the thorax are brown or blackish, and 
the abdomen is marked with four or five transverse blackish 
spots in front of the nectaries. 

Like the other aphids affecting small grains, this species is 
held in check by parasitic insects, aided by predaceoiis insects and 
fungous diseases. Injury by the aphids is usually due to the 
parasites having been killed off, thus giving the aphids oppor- 
tunity to multiply unchecked. Among the most abundant parasites 
are species of the genus Aphidius (iamily Braconidoe) , one of which 
is shown in Fig. 117, greatly enlarged. Cold, wet weather in 
spring greatly retards the development of these parasites, 
so that the aphids are always more numerous in such sea- 
sons. It has also been observed that an outbreak is often pre- 
ceded by several dry seasons, which may be due to the fact that 
such dry seasons check the development of fungous diseases which 
kill off large numbers of the aphids and which do not propagate 
in hot dry weather. Thus weather conditions are very intimately 
associated with the abundance of the pest. When the parasites 
become abundant they will often completely rid a field of the 
aphids within a few days. All of the common ladybird -beetles 
{Coccinellidoe), Syrphus-fly larvae, and lace-winged fly larvae 
{Chrysopidoe) are commonly found feeding upon the aphids. 

Control. — No practical remedy for this species is known nor 
are means of control easily suggested. The suppression of 
volunteer wheat and oats in early fall will prevent the multiplica- 
tion of the pest before fall-sown wheat is available, and the late 
sowing of wheat in the fall will reduce the numbers entering 
hibernation. A wise rotation and the thorough preparation 
of the seed-bed and liberal fertilization will be of value in avoid- 
ing injury in the same way as has been described for other pests 
of small grains. Fortunately this species rarely does very wide- 
spread injury and its parasites usually soon bring it under control. 

The Spring Grain-aphis or Green Bug * 

Though long known as a serious pest of small grains in Europe, 
this aphis has done widespread injury in this country only during 
the past ten years. Though it- occurs throughout the territory 
* Toxoptera graminum Rond. Family Aphididoe. 



138 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



north of latitude 41°, with the exception of the North Atlantic 
States, as far west as longitude 105°, the worst injury has been done 
in northern Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas, though it has also been 
injurious in the Carolinas and Tennessee. 

The habits of the insect during the winter have not been suffi- 
ciently studied to speak authoritatively, but it seems probable 
that it normally passes the winter in the egg stage, the small shin- 
ing black eggs, one-fortieth inch long, being laid on the leaves in 
the late fall. In the South, however, it often continues to 
reproduce throughout the winter, and with a mild winter the 
numbers so multiply that unless checked by parasites serious 
injury is done by late winter or early spring. Both wingless and 
winged forms occur throughout the year. The wingless female 




Fig. 118. — The spring grain-aphis or "green bug" (Toxoptera grammum) : 
a, winged migrant; h, antenna of same, a, much enlarged; h, highly 
magnified. (From Pergande, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

is from one-twenty-fifth to one-fourteenth inch long, yellowish- 
green, with a median line slightly darker, eyes and most of the 
antennae black, of the shape shown in Fig. 119. The winged 
female is slightly larger, with a wing expanse of about one- 
quarter inch, and of the same general coloration, except that the 
head is brownish-yellow and the lobes of the thorax are blackish. 
The aphids hatching from the eggs are all females, which give 
birth to live young, no male forms occurring during the summer. 
During her life of slightly over a month a female will give birth to 
50 or 60 young, which commence to reproduce in the same manner 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO SMALL GRAINS 139 

when about seven days old, so the numbers of the pest obviously 
increase with enormous rapidity, and with thousands of tiny beaks 
pumping out the sap the young grain plants soon succumb. The 
rate of reproduction and growth is, of course, much slower in 
colder weather, the above being the average for the growing season. 
Thus in an open winter the aphids will continue to multiply, and 
by February, in northern Texas, small spots of wheat and oats 
will show the effect of their work, by March the injury may become 
widespread and serious, and by the middle of April the crops may 
be ruined. As the aphids become excessively abundant and the 





Fig. 119. — Toxoptera graminum: a, newly born, and h, adult wingless green 
bug, greatly enlarged. (After S. J. Hunter.) 

food supply disappears, almost all develop wings, and immense 
clouds of the winged females are carried northward by the 
winds, so that an outbreak in early spring in the South leads to an 
infestation farther north, and excessive multiplication will again 
carry the pest still northward, progressing in that direction as it 
increases during the season, rather than being spread at one time. 
Thus in 1907 it became abundant in Oklahoma in April, in Kansas 
in May, and by July it was found in Minnesota, where it rarely 
occurs and does no damage. With the maturing of wheat and oats 



140 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



the aphids migrate to various grasses, being particularly fond of 
Kentucky blue-grass, and may subsist on corn, on which they 
may feed until oats and wheat are available in the fall. Oats is the 
favorite food, and outbreaks of the pest have always been worst 
where volunteer oats is generally grown, the aphids increasing 
on it in the early fall and winter and later spreading to wheat. 
By October 15th in Minnesota and by early November in Kansas 
the true winged males and wingless egg-laying females have been 
observed, but strangely enough they have only been secured in 
small numbers by being reared in the laboratory, and have not 
been observed in the field, so that although these females laid eggs 




Fig. 120. — Lysiphlebus testaceipes Cress., adult female and antenna of male — 
greatly enlarged. (After Webster, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

freely on the leaves of grain, we do not know whether they are 
essential or not to the life history of the insect in the field, for 
while the eggs are being produced other females continue to give 
birth to live young until the cold of winter, and they have been 
observed to reproduce with a daily mean temperature barely 
above freezing. 

Natural Control. — The natural control of this most destructive 
pest involves a most interesting relationship between temperature 
and development of the parasites which check its development. 
" The ' green bug ' in normal years — that is, when its breeding 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO SMALL GRAINS 



141 




begins in spring — is effectively held in check by its natural ene- 
mies, and notably by a minute, black wasp-like insect, Lijsiphlehus 
testaceipes Cress. (Fig. 
120), that deposits 
eggs singly in the 
'green bugs, ' the 
grubs hatching from 
the eggs feeding in- 
ternally on the bug 
and destroying i t 

(Figs. 122-123). Other ^ . . 

, . Fig. 121. — Lysiphlebiis parasite m act of depositing 

natural enemies are eggs in the body of a grain-aphis — much enlarged, 
the larvae of certain (After Webster", U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

predaceous flies, and the larva? and adults of lady-beetles. The 

little wasp-like parasite first mentioned, 
however, is the one that keeps the ' green 
bug' in control in normal years, and in 
years when the latter is most abundant 
finally over-comes it, as was the case in 
1907 in Kansas, North Carolina, and other 
States in the more northern part of the 
range of the pest." 

"Unfortunately this parasitic "wasp" — 
as with other beneficial insects — is active 
only while the temperature is above 56° F., 
or at least 10° above that at which the 
'green bug' breeds freely; and herein is the 
whole secret of the irregular disastrous out- 
breaks of the 'green bug' in grain fields. 
As accounting for the outbreak in the year 
1907, the 'green bug' had had a whole 
winter and the following late spring in 
which to breed and multiply unmolested, 
and it accomplished its principal damage, 
as in Texas and southern Oklahoma,before 
the weather was warm enough for the para- 
site to increase sufficiently to overcome it." 




Fig. 122.— Dead "green 
bugs," showing hole 
from which the matu- 
red parasite of Lysiph- 
lebus emerges. The 
top figure shows the 
lid still attached, but 
pushed back; the bot- 
tom figure shows the 
parasite emerging. 
Enlarged. (After 
Webster, U. S. Dept. 
Agr.) 



"As further illustrative of the import- 
ant bearing of weather conditions, it is found that in the case of 
the three important outbreaks of this insect, namely, for the years 



142 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



1890, 1901, and 1907, the temperature for the first five months of 
each of these years, including the latter part of the winter and 
spring, was above the normal for the winter months and below the 

normal for the spring months; in other 
words, warm winters and cold, late 
springs." 

" The little parasitic wasp which is 
so useful in the control of this pest is 
native to this country, widely dis- 
tributed, and every year does its work 
with the ' green bug ' and with other 
aphids. It is always present in grain 
fields, as shown by its appearance 
every year, tc war on these pests when- 
ever the weather conditions make 
its breeding and multiplication pos- 
sible, and its rate of breeding is so 
rapid (there being a generation about 
every ten days) that with a week or 
two of favorable weather it gains con- 
trol over its host insects and destroys 
them. * 

Control. — Most important of all 
methods of control is the abandonment 
of the growing of volunteer oats and 
the destruction of all volunteer oats 
and wheat in the early fall. Uni- 
versal experience throughout the in- 
jured area shows that relatively little 
injury occurs where volunteer oats 
is not grown. 

Where small spots of grain have been injured by the pest in late 
winter, which is the way an outbreak usually begins in southern 
localities, the aphids on these small spots may be killed by spray- 
ing with 10 per cent kerosene emulsion, or whale-oil soap, 5 pounds 
to a barrel of water, by covering the spots with straw and burning 
or by plowing under the infested spots. Were this generally done 
before the aphids commence to multiply rapidly, it is entirely 
possible that widespread injury might be averted. 

* From F. M. Webster, Circular 93, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr. 




Fig. 123. — Parasitized green 
bugs — enlarged. (From photo- 
graph, after S. J. Hunter.) 



CHAPTER IX. 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CORN 

The Western Com Root-worm * 

Throughout the corn States of the northern Mississippi Val- 
ley, wherever corn is grown upon the same land it is subject to 
serious injury by the Western Corn Root- worm, so called because 
it first became injurious 
in Missouri and Kan- 
sas and gradually spread 
eastward to Ohio, 
though not injurious 
south of the Ohio River. 
Though the life history of 
the insect has not been 
entirely determined, the 
following summarizes it 

as observed by Professors 

Q A T^r^vKoQ onrl T? IX/T ^iGi- 124.^The western corn root-worm: a, 

b. A. l<orbes and b. M. ^^^^^^. ^^ ^^^^^. ^^ enlarged leg of same; d, 

Webster in Illinois and pupa — all enlarged. (After Chittenden, U. S. 

Indiana. The eggs are ^^P*- ^s*"-) 

laid in the early fall, within a few inches of the base of the stalk, 

and just beneath the surface of the soil. The egg is a dirty white 

color, oval in shape, and about one-fiftieth inch long. The winter 

is passed in the egg stage, differing from most nearly related beetles 

in this, and the eggs hatch in the spring or early summer. At first 

the larvae eat the small roots entire, but later burrow under the 

outer layers of the larger roots, causing the stalks on rich loam to 

be easily blown over, or dwarfing the plant on poorer land so that 

it produces but small ears. The full-grown larva is nearly white 

with a brown head, a little less than one-half inch long by about 

one-tenth inch in diameter. Three pairs of short legs are found 

* Diabrotica longicornis Say. Family Chrysomelidoe. (See F. M. Webster, 
U. S. Dept. Agr. Bulletin No. 8.) 

143 



144 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

on the thorax, but otherwise the body appears perfectly smooth 
to the eye, though finely wrinkled. Before pupation the color 
becomes slightly darker and the body shortens. Leaving the 
roots, the larvse then form small oval cells in the soil and in them 
transform to pupse, from which the adult beetles emerge in a 
short time. The beetles appear from the middle of July on 
through August, about two months being required for development 
after hatching from the egg. The beetles are of a greenish or 
greenish-yellow color, about one-quarter inch long, and resemble 
the common striped cucumber-beetle (page 340) in form. They 
are to be found in the corn-fields feeding upon pollen and silk 
until the latter becomes dry, and lay their eggs during August 
and September. The beetles are often found feeding upon various 
weeds, clover, beans, cucumber and squash vines, and the blossoms 
ot thistle, sunflower and golden rod. 

Control — As the larvae feed only on corn, if the corn-field be 
planted to some other crop, starvation results, and a simple rota- 
tion in which corn is not allowed on the same land for over two 
years in succession usually prevents injury, though a field in which 
injury has occurred should be planted to some other crop at once. 
It is imprudent to plant corn on fields in which the beetle has been 
observed feeding in large numbers on clover and weeds during the 
late fall of the previous year. The liberal use of manure and fer- 
tilizers, and thorough cultivation will, of course, be of service in 
enabling the plants to withstand attack. 

The Southern Corn Root-worm * 

Closely related to the last species, but with somewhat different 
habits, the Southern Corn Root-worm is frequently injurious to 
corn from Maryland and southern Ohio southward. 

The adult beetle is of a bright green marked with twelve black 
spots, which have given it the name of 12-spotted Cucumber- 
beetle to distinguish it from the Striped Cucumber-beetle (page 340), 
with which it is often associated feeding on cucurbs. It is some- 
what larger and more robust than D. longicornis, and is almost 
omnivorous in its food habits, feeding upon the foliage and flowers 
of a long list of forage and garden crops, to which it often does 
considerable damage. Beans are frequently injured in much the 
* Diabrotica 12-punctata Oliv. Family Chrysomelidoe. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CORN 



145 



same way as corn and the roots of melons and other cucurbs are 
often so riddled by the larvse as to kill the plants. 

Injury to corn is done by the larvae in the spring, when they feed 
upon the roots while the corn is but a few inches high, bore into the 
crown, and boring into the base of the stalls through the young 
leaves eat out the " bud." The latter injury often seems to be 
more serious to corn than the injury to the roots, and has given 
the insect the common local name of " bud worm," which is 
unfortunately applied to several other insects which do similar 
injury. Larvse have been found attacking wheat, rye, millet and 
Johnson grass in a similar way, the beetles seeming to be attracted 
to fields containing Johnson grass before the corn appears, thus 




Fig. 125. — The southern corn root-worm: a, egg; b, larva; c, work of larva 
at base of cornstalk; d, pupa; e, beetle — all much enlarged except c. 
(After Riley.) 

injuring such grassy fields more severely. Injury to corn seems to 
be worse on low, damp spots. 

Life History. — The beetles hibernate over winter and are 
among the first insects to appear in early spring, appearing by the 
middle ot March in the Southern States. Eggs are laid during April 
in the Gulf States and from late April to early June in Kentucky 
and the District of Columbia. The egg is dull yellow, oval, and 



146 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

about one-fortieth inch long. The eggs are laid singly just beneath 
the surface of the soil and hatch in from seven to ten days, those 
laid early in the season requiring considerably longer. The 
larvae become full grown and pupate about a month later, the 
adult beetles of the first generation appearing during May and 
early June in the Gulf States and in late June and early July in the 
District of Columbia and Kentucky. Thus the complete life cycle 
requires from six to nine weeks in the spring. Eggs are laid by the 
first generation of beetles, the larvae being found on the roots of 
corn from midsummer until fall, when the second generation of 
beetles is found in October and November in Kentucky. In the 
Gulf States there are undoubtedly three complete generations, 
though they have not been carefully followed.* The beetles 
assemble in the late fall on clover and alfalfa upon which they feed 
until winter sets in, and often come out and feed during warm 
spells in January and February in the Southern States. 

Control. — ^Although rotation of crops will not be as effective in 
the control of this species as in the case of D. longicornis, it will 
undoubtedly be found of value to avoid planting corn in succession 
where injury is probable. By planting late, after the beetles have 
laid their eggs, injury has been avoided in Georgia. Liberal seed- 
ing, using ten grains of seed per hill, will give a sufficient stand 
free from attack, so that by thinning a good stand may be secured. 
Fields which are well infested with Johnson grass, or other thick- 
stemmed grasses, should be avoided, for as already indicated the 
beetles will be attracted to them before the corn is up. Both 
on account of the feeding habits of the larvae and the migratory 
habits of the beetles no insecticide treatment commends itself as 
practicable. 

The Corn-root Webworm f 

Injury. — When young corn-plants are seen to stop growing, 

become deformed, and to die off in such numbers as to frequently 

necessitate replanting, upon examination of the roots the injury 

will sometimes be found to be due to the work of a small caterpillar. 

Two or three, very often five or six, and sometimes as many as 

* In the Northern States, where this species is not a pest of 'corn, but is 
common on cucurbs and garden plants, there is probably but a single genera- 
tion with a life history very similar to that of the striped cucumber-beetle, 
which see. 

t Crambus caliginosellus Clem. Family Crambidoe. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CORN 



147 



eight or nine, will be found at the base of a plant about an inch 
below the surface of the soil, and not over 4 to 6 inches from 
the stalk, usually be- 
ing in close proximity 
to it. If each larva 
is covered with a fine, 
loose web, to which 
cling particles of 
earth forming a sort 
of case, it is probably 
a corn-root web- 
worm. 

Where the web- 
worms are present in 
any nimiber they will 
often necessitate a 
second, third, or 
sometimes a fourth 
planting, making the 
corn very late and in- 
volving considerable 
expense. The worms 
bore into the young 
stalks just above the 
ground, frequently 
cutting them off en- 
tirely. Later on the 
larger stalks are 
gouged out at or 
slightly above the 
surface of the ground, 
and the larvae burrow 
into the folded leaves. 




Fig. 126. — The corn-root web-worm (Crambus 
caliginosellus): a, larva; 6, pupa; c, moth; d, 
segment of larva; e, parasite. (After Johnson.) 



which when they unfold have several transverse rows of three to 
five holes. On account of this habit these insects are sometimes 
known as " budworms." Strong plants will often make a new 
start and survive the injury, but remain much behind those not 
attacked, while most of the weaker plants will decay and rot off. 



148 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

The Moth. — As one walks through pasture or grass land, 
many little white and yellowish moths are seen flying about 
on all sides, but quickly disappear as they alight on the grass. 
If a single individual be watched more closely, it will be noticed 
that in alighting upon a blade of grass it quickly rolls its wings 
very tightly around its body, and hugs up close to the grass 
so that it is hardly distinguishable from it. Projecting from the 
head in front is what appears to be a long beak or snout, on 
account of which these moths are often known as "snout moths," 
but which really consists of the palpi or feelers. The " grass- 
moths," as they are sometimes called, belong to the genus Cramhus 
and include several common species, which are marked with silver 
stripes and bands, as well as golden lines and markings, so that 
they often present a very handsome appearance. 

Life History. — These are the parents of the web-worms which 
do so much injury to the young corn-roots, the principal depreda- 
tors upon corn belonging to the species Cramhus caliginosellus. 
They lay their eggs in grass land in May or early June, dropping 
them on the surface among the rubbish or vegetation, or attaching 
them to the grass, Thej'- are oval in form and of a yellowish color, 
each being marked with regularly placed ridges. About two hun- 
dred eggs are laid by each female. In from six to ten days the 
eggs hatch. The young larvae soon form their loose silken webs 
or tubes at or a little below the surface of the soil, burrowmg 
among the roots, and feeding upon the stalk and outer leaves, 
or killing the plant by attacking the crown. The larvae vary 
considerably in color, from a yellowish white, through pink, 
to a reddish or brownish shade, and are studded with small 
tubercles, each bearing a tuft of bristly hairs. The larvae become 
full grown in from five to seven weeks and are then from one- 
half to three-fourths of an inch long. During the latter part of 
July they form cocoons, sometimes in the larval tubes, in which 
they pass the pupal stage and from which the moths emerge 
some twelve to fifteen days later. Eggs are laid for another 
brood in grass lands during August and September, the larvae 
hatching in September and October and becoming partly grown 
before winter. They hibernate in their webs over winter, and as 
soon as the grass commences its growth in the spring they are 
to be found feeding upon it, becoming full grown early in May. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CORN 149 

Preventive. — As the natural food of these insects is grass, it 
is not surprising that corn planted on sod land should be worst 
injured; and though the injury done the grass may not have been 
noticeable, when the available food is so greatly diminished by 
substituting for grass the comparatively few hills of corn the 
injury becomes much more serious and apparent. Though the 
planting of corn on sod land is a most common practice, injury 
by this and many other insect pests of corn — most of whose 
native food is grass — might be avoided by planting any other 
crop than a grain, such as potatoes. Otherwise plowing late in 
the fall and harrowing so as to expose the larvae to the weather, 
or plowing so deeply that they will be buried so that they cannot 
regain the surface, will do much to prevent injury the next season. 
Inasmuch as the moth will not lay her eggs upon plowed land 
if the land be plowed early she will be driven to other fields; 
but the exact time of oviposition varies for different latitudes. 

Generous fertilization will aid the plants in overcoming 
injury very considerably. Dr. J. B. Smith advises " the applica- 
tion of all the necessary potash in the form of kainit, put on as 
a top-dressing after the field is prepared for planting," and says: 
"Fall plowing and kainit as a top-dressing in spring will, I feel 
convinced, destroy by all odds the greater proportion of the web- 
worms that infest the sod, and would also destroy or lessen many 
other pests which trouble corn during the early part of its life." 

The Corn-root Aphis * 

Where patches of corn become dwarfed, the leaves becoming 
yellow and red, with a general lack of vigor, the grower may well 
be suspicious of the presence of the Corn-root aphis. These 
little aphids, which cluster on the roots of corn, are a bluish- 
green color, with a white waxy bloom, and of the form shown in 
Fig. 127. Two short, slender tubes project from the posterior 
part of the abdomen which are commonly called honey-tubes, 
because they were formerly supposed to give out the honey-dew, 
which is so relished by the ants which tend the aphids to secure 
it. The winged female has a black head and brownish-black 
thorax, with pale green abdomen bearing three or four blackish 

* Aphis maidi-radicis Forbes. Family Aphididoe. 



150 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

marginal spots and small dark specks over the surface. The 
antennae are dark and the legs blackish. 

The corn-root aphis occurs throughout the principal corn- 
growing States, but has been most destructive where corn is 
most extensively grown and is often planted year after year 
on the same land. Dr. Forbes, to whom we are indebted for 
most of our knowledge of this pest,* has observed fields of 
corn in Illinois planted in corn for the second season totally ruined 
by the root-aphis. Broom-corn and sorghum are the only other 
cultivated crops which have been injured^ but the list of food 




Fig. 127. — The corn root-aphis (Aphis maidi-radicis Forbes): at left, ovip- 
arous female; a, hind tibia, showing sensor ia; at right, male; a, antenna 
— much enlarged. (After Forbes.) 

plants includes smartweed, purslane, ragweed, foxtail, and crab 
grasses, and many other weeds and grasses which spring up in 
the corn-field. In South Carolina Professor A. F, Conradi has 
found it injuring cotton. 

* S. A. Forbes, 17th, 18th, and 25th Reports of the State Entomologist 
of Illinois; Bulletin 60, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr., p. 29; Bul- 
letins 104, 130, and 178, Illinois Agr. Exp. Sta. [See also J. J. Davis, Bulletin 
12, Part VIII, Technical Series, and U. S. Dept. Bulletin 891, Bureau of 
Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr., and F. M.Webster, Circular 86, Bureau of 
Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr. 




Fig. 128. — Diagram showing history of the corn root-aphid and its relations 
with the cornfield ant. Note that during the winter the aphids are carried 
by the ants below the frost line, where the plow cannot reach them. (After 
J. J. Davis, U. S. Dept. Agr. Bulletin 891.) 

151 



152 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



If the nests of the small brown ant* so common in corn-fields 
infested with the root-aphis, be broken open during the winter, 






Fig. 129. — The corn-root aphis (Aphis madidi-radicis Forbes): fl, wingless 
vivaparous female; a, apex of abdomen; 2, antenna of same; 3, pupa; 
4, winged vivaparous female; 5, antenna of same. (After Forbes.) 

many of the little black aphis eggs, which have been carefully- 
stored by the ants, will be found. They are a glossy black color, 
oval in shape, and will sometimes be found in small piles in the 



* Lasius niger Linn. var. americanus Emery. See Forbes, Bulletin 131, 
Illinois Agr. Exp. Sta. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CORN 153 

chambers of the ants' nests. On warm days the ants bring 
them up to the warmer surface soil and in cold weather carry 
them far down into the unfrozen earth. With the appearance 
of young smartweed and foxtail-grass in April and May the eggs 
commence to hatch. The ants at once lay bare the roots of 
these plants and carry their young wards to them, where large 
colonies soon become established. If the field is not planted in 
corn, the lice will feed later upon the roots of pigeon-grass or 
purslane. In early May lice, the second generation, commence 
to appear, among them being both wingless and winged forms. 
This brood and all of these during the summer are produced by 
females known as agamic females, which give birth to live young 
without mating with a male. As soon as corn plants are available 
the ants again transfer the aphids to their roots, and carry any 
winged aphids which may have spread over the field down on 
to the roots of the corn. All through the summer the ants 
attend the lice, burrowing around the roots of the corn, and 
carrying them from plant to plant, in return for which the 
aphids give off the sweet honey-dew, when stroked by the ants' 
antennae, upon which the ants feed. During the summer the 
aphids continue to reproduce with extreme rapidity, an aphid 
maturing and giving birth to young about eight days after it is born, 
each generation taking about sixteen days and there being about 
twelve generations during the season. Both winged and wingless 
agamic females occur throughout the summer, but late in Sep- 
tember and in October wingless forms which develop into true 
males and females are produced. These mate and the females 
lay eggs during October, most of them being carried by the ants 
to their nests, where the eggs are laid. 

Control. — Owing to the fact that the aphids do not migrate 
until the second generation, a rotation of crops will be of great 
service in checking their injuries, as corn planted on uninfested 
land will not be attacked until it has been able to secure a good 
start, and if well fertilized will be able to withstand successfully 
whatever injury may occur. Rarely is corn on land not in corn 
the previous year seriously injured, and where infestation has 
not been serious throughout a community, it may usually be 
grown two years in succession with safety. 







Fig. 130.— The corn-field ant (Lasius niger americanus) : '1, worker; 2, larva* 
3, winged male; 4, pupa; 5, winged female; 6, female with wings re- 
moved. (After Forbes.) 

154 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CORN 155 

The proper fertilization of plants affected with root insects 
is always of great importance, enabling the plant to make a crop 
in spite of them if the attack is not too severe. Professor F, M, 
Webster observes that land which has been fertilized with barn- 
yard manure is much less injured by this insect than that where 
commercial fertilizers are used. 

As the ants not only spread the pest during spring and summer, 
but house the eggs in their nests over winter, any means for 
destroying their nests will be of importance in controlling the 
aphids. Where it is practicable, deep plowing in late fall and 
winter, with thorough harrowing, will break up the nests, and 
land so treated has shown decidedly less injury the next season. 
Similarly plowing deeply and harrowing several times in spring 
not only breaks up the ants' nests, but destroys the weeds and 
grasses upon which the aphids feed before corn is up, and also 
furnishes the best possible seed-bed and soil conditions. This 
should be particularly thorough in low spots where weeds are 
thickest and where the aphids appear first. Such spring cultiva- 
tion has been demonstrated as very effective in the control of 
the pest. In recent years Professor S. A. Forbes has conducted 
experiments in Illinois which seem to show that dipping the seed 
in a repellant such as a lemon oil will render it obnoxious to the 
ants, and thus protect the hill. This has not proven successful, 
however, when heavy rains followed planting and washed off 
the repellant. Lemon oil was used by adding 1 gallon of wood 
Alcohol to 1 pint of oil of lemon, of which 3 fluid ounces (6. table- 
spoonfuls) were stirred into each gallon of seed used, being sure 
that all the seeds were well coated. Such a treatment cost about 
ten cents per acre and resulted in reducing the number of aphids 
89 per cent and the number of ants 79 per cent, so that it may 
well be given a trial, but the chief reliance should be placed upon 
rotation and early cultivation. 

The Com Leaf-aphis * 

Although the corn leaf-aphis is not often very seriously 
injurious to corn, in Texas and other Southern States it frequently 
becomes so abundant on sorghmn and corn, and in winter on 

* Aphis maidis Fitch. Family Aphididoe. See Webster and Davis, 
I.e. 



156 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

barley, as to do considerable injury. This species is also of interest 
in that it appears on corn foliage in midsummer at the time when 
the numbers of the root-aphis commence to decrease on the roots, 
and it was for many years thought to be the same species. Care- 
ful rearing experiments made under the direction of Dr. S. A. 
Forbes have failed to show any connection between the root- 
aphis and leaf-aphis, the aphids from the roots being unable to 
establish themselves on the leaves and those on the leaves never 
migrating to the roots.* 

Dr. Forbes describes the species in his twenty-third report 
as follows: "In the latter part of the summer this bluish-green 



Fig. 131. — The corn leaf-aphis (Aphis maidis Fitch): winged female — much 
enlarged. (After Webster, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

plant-louse may occasionally be found on the younger leaves, 
the tassel, and the upper part of stalks of corn, and more abun- 
dantly and frequently on broom-corn and sorghum. Multiply- 
ing in place by the birth of living young, which do not wander 
from their place of origin, these leaf-lice may become abundant 
enough to kill the leaves and to some extent to affect the health 
of the plant. The insect is, however, rarely seriously injurious 
to corn, but there is some evidence, . . . that it may prevent the 
fertilization of the kernel by sucking the sap from the silk and 
killing it before it has performed its function. Heavily infested 

* S. A. Forbes, 13th, 16th, 18th, and 23d Reports of the State Entomologist 
of Illinois. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CORN 157 

corn leaves turn yellow or red, and may shrivel and die, partic- 
ularly if the weather be dry at the time. Broom-corn is consider- 
ably damaged by a reddened discoloration of the brush, due to a 
bacterial affection following upon the plant-louse punctures. 

"The wingless form of this aphis about 2 mm. (one-twelfth inch) 
long and half as wide at the widest part, the body being somewhat 
ovate in outline. The general color is pale green, with the cauda, 
cornicles and the greater part of the rostrum, antennae and legs 
black. The head is marked with two longitudinal dark bands, 
and the abdomen with a row of black spots on each side 
and a black patch about the base of the cornicles. The latter 
are swollen in the middle, making the outlines convex. 

The winged form is somewhat different in color, the head being 
black and the thorax chiefly black above. 
The abdomen is pale green, bluish at V^ >^ 

the sides, with two transverse black V >>. jr Jf 
bands preceding the cauda, and the seg- \ {"%. jf 

ments behind it edged with dark. ' ' These ^^=%^i^JO^:^r^ 

differences between this and the root y'*^!- ■ -^iV 
aphis are shown in the accompanying . 
figures. "Aphis maidis has been re- 
ported at various times as a corn insect 
from New York to Texas, Minnesota 
and California. The species makes its 

appearance in midsummer, our earliest Fig. 132. — ^The wingless 
1 , /T,,. .... T 1 r» 1 • female of the corn leaf- 

date (Illmois) bemg July 9, when speci- aphis— much enlarged, 
mens were found on young leaves of corn. (After Webster, U. S. Dept. 
We have no record whatever to show 

whence it comes or where it lives preceding this time. Having 
once commenced to breed on the food-plants mentioned, it con- 
tinues there until freezing weather overtakes it, when, with the 
death of its food plants, it gradually disappears, leaving neither 
eggs nor hibernating adults on or about these plants, and passing 
the winter we do not know how or where." Its occurrence on bar- 
ley in Texas in January may throw some light upon its wintering 
habits in the South. " The latest to develop in the field largely 
acquire wings, and as the sap supply in the plant diminishes they 
fly away. Wingless females, on the other hand, perish on the 



158 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



spot. Indications are thus very strong that this is a migrating 
species whose second food plant is thus far unknown." 

No experiments in the practical treatment of this pest seem 
to have been recorded. 

The Larger Com Stalk-borer * 

Throughout the South from Maryland to Louisiana and west- 
ward to Kansas more or less 
serious injury is done by 
large white, brown-spotted 
caterpillars which bore into 
the stalks. In spring the 
young caterpillars bore into 
the heart of the young 
plant and like other insects 
with similar habits (see 
page 146) are known as 
"budworms." Later the 
hollowing out of the stalk 
so weakens the plant that 
it is readily broken over by 
the wind. Consequently a 
loss of from 25 to 50 per 
cent of the crop not infre- 
quently results where the 
pest is abundant. 

Life History. — When the 
caterpillars become full 
grown in the fall they bur- 
row down into the tap-root 
and there pass the winter 
Fig. 133.— Work of the larger corn stalk- in a small cavity at or near 
w!!^" ^' general appearance of stalk in- ^^^ g^^f^^^^ ^f ^j ground. 
tested by the early generation of borers; , ° 

h, same cut open to show pupa and larval About the time the land is 
burrow. (After Howard, U. S. Dept. Agr.) ^^:^^^ prepared for corn, 

from March 15 to April 30, depending on the locality, the larva 
changes into a reddish-brown pupa, from which the moth emerges 
in ten days or more. The moth is brownish-yellow in color with 




* Diatraea zeacolella Dyar. 
1025, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 



Family Crambidce. See Farmers' Bulletin 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CORN 



159 



wings expanding 1^ inches, the hind-wings being darker and bear- 
ing faint markings (Fig. 135) . The eggs are laid at dusk upon the 
under surface of the leaves of the young corn, and hatch in from 
seven to ten days. The eggs are flat, scale-like, and placed in rows 
of from two to twenty-five, slightly overlapping each other. They 
are 3-100 inch long, by two thirds as wide, at first a creamy-white, 
but gradually becoming a reddish brown. The young larva bores 
into the stalk, often destroying the "bud," and then at or near the 
ground, where it burrows upward in the pith, seldom damaging 




Fig. 134. — a, b, c, varieties of the larva of the larger corn stalk-borer; d, 
third thoracic segment; e, eighth abdominal segment; /, abdominal 
segment from side; g, same from above — enlarged. (After Howard, 
U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

the stalk above the third joint. As the borers grow they become 
quite active and frequently leave and re-enter the stalk, thus mak- 
ing several holes. The caterpillars become full grown in twenty to 
thirty days, and are about one inch long, dirty-white, thickly cov- 
ered with dark spots, each of which bears a short, dark bristle. The 
mature caterpillar bores outward to the surface of the stalk, 
making a hole for the escape of the adult moth, which it covers 
with silk, and then transforms to a pupa in its burrow. This 
occurs during July, and the moths of the second generation emerge 
in seven to ten days. The second brood larvae feed on the old 
stalks, tunneling them between the second joint and the ground, 
and become full grown about harvest time when they go into winter 
quarters in the root as above described. 



160 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Control. — It has been observed that late planted corn is much 
less injured than that planted early, but as it is more seriously 
injured by some other pests, late planting may not be advisable. 
Where corn has been seriously injured, the old stalks or butts 

should be dragged off the 
field and burned late in the 
fall, thus destroying the 
over- wintering borers. 
When corn is stripped for 
fodder, the stalks left stand- 
ing and the land sown in 
small grain, the most favor- 
able conditions are allowed 
the borers for safely passing 
the winter and developing 
into moths which will fly to 
new fields in the spring. 

A simple rotation of crops 
will also lessen injury con- 
si derably, as Dr. L. 0. 
Howard has observed that 




Fig. 135. — The larger corn stalk-borer, a, 
female; b, wings of male; c, pupai — all 
somewhat enlarged. (After Howard, 
U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



where fields which had been in corn the previous year were dam- 
aged 25 per cent, those planted on sod land were damaged but 10 
per cent, though reasonably close to land which had been in corn. 

Bill-bugs * 

Throughout the South and often in the more Northern States, 
Canada, and the West the bill-bugs sometimes become serious 
enemies of young corn-plants. They are called *' bill-bugs " on 
account of the prolongation of the head, termed a bill or snout, 
peculiar to all the weevils or "snout-beetles," by means of which 
they are enabled to drill holes in the corn-stalks. Several species 
belonging to the genus Sphenophorus are commonly injurious to 
corn. One of these, S. parvulus Gyll., also attacks small grains 
and timothy, and is therefore known as the Grain Sphenophorus. 
Another species, S. obscurus Boisd., does considerable injury to 
sugar-cane in Hawaii. The adult beetles are from one-fourth to 

* Species of Sphenophorus. Family Calandridce. See S. A. Forbes, 23d 
Report of the State Entomologist of Illinois. Also Farmers' Bulletin 1003, 
U. S. Dept. Agr., and Z. P. Metcalf, N. C. Expt. Sta. Bull, 13 Tech. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CORN 161 

three-fourths of an inch long, of the form shown in the illustration, 
and are of a brown or black color, marked with darker longitudinal 
ridges on the wing-covers. The larva is a thick fleshy white 
grub, from one-fourth to five-eighths of an inch long, with a brown 
head and cervical shield on the first segment, and footless. 

Life History. — The life histories of the different species are 
but partially known. 




Fig. 13G. — Sphenophorus ochreus, larva, adult, and work in roots of Scirpus. 
(After F. M. Webster, "Insect Life.") 

S. parvulus hibernates over winter as a beetle, appearing in 
March and April. The female punctures the stalk of wheat or 
timothy — oats and barley are also sometimes attacked — a little 
above the roots, and deposits her egg in the cavity. This is done 
in May or June or even up to July 1st. The larvae are to be found 
during July, becoming full grown and pupating during the latter 
part of that month. The larva) will eat out^quite a cavity in the 
interior of the stalk or bulb, and then attack the roots, thus often 
killing a whole clump or stool of small grain or timothy. The 
pupal stage is passed in a small cell in the earth and lasts from two 
to three weeks, adult beetles emerging from the middle of August 
to the first of October. 



162 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

One of the species most injurious to corn is S. ochreus Lee. 
The hfe history is much the same as that of S. parvulus, though 
eggs have been found as late as July 30th, The natural food-plant 
of this species, however, is the common club-rush (Scirpus jiuvia- 
tilis), the roots of which consist of bulbs connected by smaller 
slender roots. The eggs are deposited in or about the roots of this 
rush, never having been found on corn. The bulbs of the rush are 
very hard and oftentimes as large as hens' eggs. In them the 
larvae burrow, becoming full grown and transforming to pupae, 
from which the adult beetles appear in August and September. 
When the rush becomes too hard for the beetles they often attack 
a common reed (Phrag mites communis), piercing and splitting 
lengthwise the unfolded terminal leaves, and eating out the suc- 
culent portions within. The injury to corn is done by the beetles 
while the corn is still young, feeding upon it in the same manner 
as do the other species. " Standing with the head downward and 
the feet embracing the lower part of the stalk," says Dr. Forbes, 
"thej?- slowly sink the beak into the plant, using the jaws to make 
the necessary perforation. By moving forward and backward 
and twisting to the right and left, the beetle will often hollow out a 
cavity beneath the surface much larger than the superficial injury 
will indicate." As the lower part of the stalk becomes hardened, 
they leave it for the terminal portion, and when the ears commence 
to form they often penetrate the husk and gouge out the soft cob. 
Sometimes the injury thus inflicted is but slight, merely resulting 
in a puncturing of the leaves when they unfold, these holes being 
in a series across the leaf resulting from a single puncture when the 
leaf was folded, and looking much like the work of the corn-root 
webworm; but when several beetles attack a young plant, they 
will either kill it outright or so deform the foliage and stalk that 
no ear will mature. 

Several other species have also been known to do more or less 
injury to corn, viz., S. scoparius, placidus, cariosus, sculptilis, 
and pertinax, but so far as known their habits and injuries are 
much the same as of those already described. 

Means of Control. — The control of these pests is rather a diffi- 
cult task. S. ochreus, as in fact are all of the species, is most 
injurious on recently cleared swamp-lands, and usually disappears 
as fast as these lands are drained and cultivated. Planting flax, 
potatoes, or some crop not attacked by these insects for the first 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CORN 



163 



crop will largely prevent so serious injury to a subsequent corn 
crop. The burning over of grass- and swamp-lands infested with 
the beetles will also be of considerable value. 



The Maize Bill-bug * 

Throughout the Southern States and northward to Kansas 
there has l^een more or less serious injury by a bill-bug which has 




Fig. 137. — Sections of sugar-cane showing work of Sphenophorus obscurus: 
a, larva; b, pupa; c, probable points of oviposition. (After Riley and 
Howard, "Insect Life.") 

been recognized for many years as Sphenophorus robustus Horn. 

Recently Dr. F. H. Chittenden has recognized this insect as a new 

* Sphenophorus maidis Chittn., see E. O. G. Kelly, Bulletin 95, Part II, 
Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr See also W. P. Hayes, Tech. 
Bulletin 6, Kansas Expt. Station, and Farmers' Bulletin 1003, U. S. Dept. 
Agr. 



164 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

species and Mr. E. O. G. Kelly has published a complete account 
of its life history, from which the following is taken. 

As will be seen below this species is known to pass its entire life 
history upon the corn-plant so that the common name given it 
appropriately distinguishes it from other bill-bugs previously 
mentioned. It has, however, been found feeding and probably 

breeding in swamp-grass (Tripsacum 
dactyloides) , which may be its native 
food plant. 

Life History. — The eggs were 
found in southern Kansas during 
June, laid in punctures made by the 
female in young corn-plants. These 
egg punctures are mere slits and do 
not seem materially to injure the 
plant. The eggs hatch in from seven 
to twelve days, and from them 
emerge small footless, dingy white 
grubs, with chestnut-brown heads, 
of the appearance shown in Fig. 140. 
"They at once begin feeding on the 
tissues of the young corn at the bot- 

^'(S^wlt riS Chittn"! t°» "f the egg puncture, directing 

— four times natural size. (Af- their burrow inward and downward 
ter Kelly, U. S. Dept. Agr.) ^^^^ ^^le taproot. When they finish 

eating the tender parts of the taproot they direct their feeding 
upward, continuing until full grown, allowing the lower portion of 
the burrow to catch the frass and excrement. This burrowing of 
the taproot of the young growing corn-plant is disastrous to the 
root system; . . . allowing it to die or become more or less 
dwarfed." Often the young larvae bm-row into the heart of the 
plant and cut off the growing bud, thus killing the top. The 
larvae become full grown early in August, when they are about 
four-fifths of an inch long. '' The larvae, on finishing their growth, 
descend to the lower part of the burrow, to the crown of the tap- 
root, cutting the pith of the cornstalk into fine shreds, with which 
they construct a cell where they inclose themselves for pupation." 
The pupae are to be found in these cells in late August and early 
September, the pupal stage lasting ten to twelve days. The adults 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CORN 



165 



commence to emerge by the middle of August and continue to do 
so until the middle of September. " Some of them leave the pupal 
cells, but most of them remain there for hibernation." Those which 
emerged disappeared and probably hibernated in some dense, 
coarse grass nearby. Those which hibernated in the pupal cells 



<^/ 



Adult 
Egg 



,X'<\ 



v<^ 



Larva 
Pupa 
19/4 






vo. 



Oi 



4) 



<^f 



Fig. 139. — Diagram representing the seasonal appearance of the maize bill- 
bug in 1914 in Kansas. (After W. P. Hayes, Technical Bulletin 6, 
Kansas Agr. Expt. Station.) 

emerged the next spring about the time that young corn was 
sprouting. The beetles are from two-fifths to three-fifths of an inch 
long, of a dull shining black color, and sculptured as shown in 
Fig. 138. " The beetles are rarely observed on account of their 
quiet habits and because they are covered with mud — a condition 
which is more or less common among several species of this genus 



166 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 




and which is caused by a waxy exudation of the elytra to which the 

soil adheres. The presence of the 
adults of this species in a cornfield is 
made evident by the withering of the 
top leaves of very young corn-plants, 
the plants having been severely 
gouged. After the plants grow 10 

Fig. 140.-Larva of the maize bill- to 15 inches tall they do not kill 

bug — twice natural size. (After them, but gouge out such large cav- 
Kelly, U. S. Dept. Agr.) -^j^g -^ ^^^ ^^^^^^ ^^^^ ^^^^ become 

twisted into all sorts of shapes. 
The attacked plants sucker pro- 
fusely, affording the young, ten- 
der growth for the beetles to feed 
upon, even for many days after 
the non-infested plants have be- 
come hard." Injury seems to 
be most serious on low land. 
Injury by this species somewhat 
resembles that done by the larger 
cornstalk-borer (Diatraea zeaco- 
lella), but is easily distinguished 
from the work of the other bill- 
bugs, as the punctures of the lat- 
ter, which usually form a row or 
rows of holes in the leaves when 
they unfold, are not always fatal 
to the plants. 

Control. — Inasmuch as most 
of the beetles hibernate in the 
corn stubble, they may be readily 
destroyed by pulling out and 
burning the stubble. Care must 
be taken, however, to pull out 
the taproot, as the stalk will be 
liable to break above the beetle 
and leave it in the ground. As 
the infested stalks have a poor 
root system, they are easily 
pulled. Crop rotation and fall plowing are also of great value 




Fig. 141. — ^Corn plant showing the 
result of attack of the maize bill- 
bug: a, larval burrow containing 
pupa in natural position — reduced 
two-thirds; 5, egg-puncture con- 
taining egg— enlarged (After Kelly, 
U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CORN 



167 



The Lesser Com Stalk-borer * 

This small moth has been sporadically injurious for many 
years and seems to be on the increase in the Southern States where 
it is at times injurious 



to corn, sorghums, 
wheat, cowpeas and 
crabgrass, as well as 
other plants in con- 
siderable numbers. 

Description. — The 
moth is a small, Fig. 142. — The lesser com stalk borer: larva, greatly 
brownish gray form "^^^^^"^- ^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^ ^""^ ^^«^^' ^' ^O 
with a wing expanse of less than one inch. The fore wings of the 
female are darker than those of the male. The larvae are slender 
caterpillars, three quarters of an inch in length. Their prevaihng 
color is a light green with darker markings, prominent among 
which are brownish transverse bands. 





Fig. 






143. — The lesser corn stalk-borer: a, male moth; b, fore-wing of female 
moth. Greatly enlarged. (After Luginbill and Ainslie, L. C.) 



Life history. — Eggs are produced throughout the summer 
and fall and the winter is passed in the larval or pupal stage. 
There are probably as many as four generations in the southern 
range of the insect and fewer in the North. 

* Elasmopalpus lignosellus Zeller. Family Pyalididt^. 
See U. S. Dept. Agr. Bulletin 539, Luginbill and Ainslie. 



168 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

Injury. — Injury from these insects is, as the name indicates, 
due to their boring in the stalks of the food plant. It may be 
anywhere from slight to total. They seem to prefer crops grown 
on sandy soil. 

Control. — Absolutely clean cultivation, including cleaning 
up of fence rows and waste places, along with late fall plowing, 
are recommended as the best methods of control. 




Fig. 144. — Map showing present known distribution of the lesser corn stalk- 
borer (Elasmopalpus lignosellus) in the United States. (After Luginbill 
and Ainslie, L. C.) 

The Com Ear-worm * 

Practically the only insect injuring the ears of field-corn and 
the worst insect pest of sugar-corn, is the ear-worm. In the 
extreme South it is almost impossible to grow sugar-corn success- 
fully on account of its injury, while farther north it largely reduces 
the profits of corn grown for the cannery, and destroys a consider- 
able percentage of the kernels of field-corn. It is a most cosmopol- 
itan insect, being found throughout the United States and in many 
parts of the world, and has a long list of food plants, being known 
as the tomato fruit-worm, tobacco bud-worm, and cotton boll- 

* Chloridea obsoleia Fab. Family Noctuidce. 

See H. Garman, Bulletin 187, Kentucky Agr. Expt. Station and Farmers' 
Bulletin 872, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CORN 



169 



worm when attacking these plants, besides which it feeds on beans, 
peas, and many garden crops and forage plants, such as cowpeas 
and alfalfa. 

Life History. — Along the Gulf Coast the first moths appear in 
April, in the latitude of 33° about the middle of May, and in the 
latitude of Delaware and Kansas, early in June. 

The moth is about three-quarters of an inch long with a wing 
expanse of about 1| inches and is extremely variable in color and 
markings. Some are dull olive green while others are yellowish 




Fig. 145. — Corn ear-worms at work. The central cob has been attacked by 
a nearly full-grown worm, which has bored through the husk near the 
middle. 

or nearly white and with almost no markings. In the most typical 
moths the wings are bordered with dark bands, the wing veins are 
black and the fore-wings are spotted with black. 

The eggs are hemispherical in shape, about one-fifteenth inch in 
diameter, light yellowish, and prettily corrugated with ridges as 
shown in Fig. 201. Those of the first brood are laid on corn, peas, 



170 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



beans, or whatever food-plants are available, and hatch in three to 
five days, depending upon the temperature. 

The caterpillars of the first generation often attack corn when 
about knee-high, feeding in the axils of the tender leaves, so that 

when the leaves unroll 
they bear horizontal rows 
of holes. The caterpil- 
lars are exceedingly vari- 
able in color, being from 
a light green through 
rose color and brown to 
almost black, and either 
striped, spotted or per- 
fectly plain. They be- 
come full grown in about 
2| weeks and are then 
about li to 1| inches 
long. When done feed- 
ing the caterpillar bur- 
rows 2 to 5 inches into 
the soil near the base of 
the plant. A cell is then 
constructed which runs 
back to within a half 
inch of the surface of the 
soil, so that the moth 
may readily push off this 
surface soil and escape. The burrow finished, the larva retires 
to the bottom of the cell and there molts and enters the pupal. 
The pupa is four-fifths inch long, shining reddish-brown. 
During the summer the moths emerge about two weeks later, 
but the last generation in the fall passes the winter in the pupal 
stage. Thus the complete life cycle from egg to adult moth 
requires slightly over a month in midsummer, and from six to 
eight weeks for the spring and fall broods. 

The second generation of moths appears about the middle 
of July in the latitude of Delaware and Kansas. In the far 
South the second generation of moths appears when corn is com- 




FiG. 146. — Corn ear-worm or cotton boll- 
worm (Chloridea obsoleta): a, adult moth; 
h, dark full-grown larva; c, light-colored 
full-grown larva; d, pupa — natural size. 
(After Howard, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CORN 



171 



ing into silk and tassel, upon which the moths always prefer to 
lay their eggs. As a result, the caterpillars of the second genera- 
tion of the South, and the third farther North, do serious injury 
to field-corn, gnawing out the kernels at the tips of the ears, and 
furnishing favorable conditions for molds to propagate, which 




Fig. 147. — Corn ear-worm. Husk of ear of sugar-corn torn open, showing 
worms at work on tip and hole through which a full grown worm has left. 

do further injury. From 2 to 5 per cent of the corn crop of the 
country, with a cash value of $60,000,000 to $150,000,000, is thus 
destroyed by the ear-worm annually. 

The third generation of moths appears the last of August 
in Delaware and Kansas and gives rise to the third brood of 



172 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



caterpillars, which is there the most destructive brood on field- 
corn and sugar-corn, frequently causing a loss of from 10 to 50 




Fig. 148. — Tip of ear of corn showing eggs of corn ear-worm on silks. (After 
Quaintance and Brues, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

per cent of the latter crop. The caterpillars become full grown 
during the latter part of September and change to pupae, which 
hibernate over winter as already described. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CORN 173 

In the Gulf States there are four full broods and along the 
Gulf Coast there may be five or six, while in the Northern States 
there are but two generations, with possibly but one in Ontario. 

Control. — As the pupa pass the winter in the soil, by all means 
the most satisfactory and practical means of control is to plow 
infested land in late fall or during the winter, plowing deeply 
and harrowing. This will break up the pupal cells, crush some 
of the pupaj, and expose others to the rigors of winter to which 
most of them will succumb. 

The early planting of field-corn prevents the moths from lay- 
ing their eggs upon it, as it will have passed the silking stage and 
other fields which are in silk will be preferred; it being possible 
thus to reduce the injury by at least a third by early planting. 

Silks and foliage of sweet corn are sometimes poisoned with 
arsenate of lead applied in the form of a dust, three to five appli- 
cations being used, and much benefit has been recorded from the 
treatment but it has not yet proven practical for field corn on 
account of the expense. 

The European Com Borer * 

Concerning this insect, a recent importation from Europe, 
we can do no better than to quote from Mr. Caffrey who, in his 
introduction to Farmers' bulletin 1046 of the U. S. Department 
of Agriculture, summarizes the situation as follows: 

" The European Corn Borer probably is the most injurious 
plant pest that has yet been introduced into this country. It 
is now known to be present in an area of about 320 square miles 
near Boston, Mass. Unless repressed and restricted it may 
spread throughout the country and cause serious and widespread 
losses to the corn crop. 

The larvae, or borers, tunnel through all parts of the corn plant 
and destroy or severety injure the ears and stalks. The pest 
also attacks celery, Swiss chard, beans, beets, spinach, oats, po- 
tatoes, tomatoes, turnips, dahlias, chrysanthemums, gladiolus, 
geraniums, timothy, and certain weeds and grasses. 

* Pyrausta nubialis Hiiebner. Family Pyralididcp. 

See Vinal and Caffrev, Bulletin 189, Massachusetts Expt. Station and 
Farmers' Bulletin 1046, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 




The 





N BORER 



is the caterpillar 

ofa small moth. 



The mbths lay their 
eg'g's in flat masses^,^ 
on. the undersides yNi/;A 
of the-corn leavej'. ' /:W/ 

The caterpillars^^H?^ 

hatch from these egg5 and 

feed at fir3t on. the leaves, tut 

soon bore into the tassels.the 

stalk, the leaf-ribs and theear^ 

They live in th e 

j^talkb all winter and | 

"^ in spring change | 

to reddish-brown pupae^ 

which 5oon transform. '' 

again to moths.. 



The pest also attacks 

other_^arden plant.s,weeds, 

and larger grasses,and lives 

through the winter in the. 

jtalks of these plants as 

yyeii as in corn. . 



Burn All Plants Containing Caterpillar5. 

Cornstalks, corn stubble, g'rasses, weeds, and |f|j 
5talks of garden plants should be thus destroyed J A| 
throughout infested areas during" fall, 'IL'W^ llllu 
winter or early spring^.No other effective 
method is known for cornbating" this pest. 




3roken tassels with i 
extrusrons of saw 
dust like material 
at the breaks are the 
plainest signs of an 
infested field 



Holes in the stalk 
w thsawduit I ke 
debris extruded 
uidicate where 
the borer IS at 
work 




Fig. 149. — Department of Agriculture warning against the European corn 
borer. (After Caffrey, Farmers' Bulletin 1046.) — 

174 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CORN 175 

There are two generations each year, so that multiplication 
and spread are rapid, especially as very few of the borers are 
destroyed by natural enemies. The winter is passed in the larva 
or borer stage within infested plants. 

To suppress this pest burn or otherwise destroy during the 
fall, winter, or spring all cornstalks, corn stubble, crop remnants, 
and stalks of garden plants, weeds, or wild grasses within the 
infested areas Hkely to harbor the overwintering borers. Work of 
this kind is now being conducted by the Federal, State, and local 
authorities, and the hearty cooperation of all property owners, 
tenants, or other interested persons is earnestly solicited. This 
work must he done very thoroughly. The borers in a few over- 
looked plants may increase by the end of the season to as many 
as were present before the clean-up. 

To prevent the spread of the insect, quarantine measures, 
both Federal and State, must be strictly enforced to prevent 
shipment of infested plants or plant products out of the area 
now infested. 

Since the date of this bulletin (April, 1919) the borer has been 
found in New York State, an area of 400 square miles near Schen- 
ectady having been found to be infested. 

Since little work has been done on the insect in this country 
except through the U. S. Bureau of Entomology we give here also 
a copy of the posters summarizing the apperance of the injury, 
just as they were sent out by the bureau. It is impossible to 
predict how rapidly the insect will spread or how well it will adapt 
itself to our conditions. It can be said, however, that it is poten- 
tially the most serious pest which has ever threatened the corn 
of the country. 



CHAPTER X 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO STORED GRAINS * 

The farmer who stores his grain, awaiting a higher price, 
is sometimes sadly disappointed to find that it has been so riddled 
by "weevil " that it brings no more than had it been sold previously. 

The term "weevil" is rather a comprehensive one, being 
commonly applied to almost every insect infesting stored food- 
products. Only a few species are commonly injurious in the 
farm granary. 

Grain-weevils 

Of these the Granary-weevilf and the Rice-weevil { (Fig. 
150), are the most common and widely distributed. Both of 

these 'insects have in- 
fested grain from the 
most ancient times, so 
long, in fact, that the 
granary-weevil has lost 
the use of its wings and 
remains entirely in- 
doors. They are small, 
brown beetles, from 
one-eighth to one-sixth 
of an inch in length, 
with long snouts which 
are of great service in 
boring into the kernels 
of grain. By means of 
them the females punc- 
ture the grain and then 
insert an egg in the 
cavity. The larva 

* See Farmers' Bulletin 1029, U. S. Dept. Agr., and G. A. Dean, BuUetin 
189, Kansas Agr. Exp. Station, 
t Calandra granaria Linn, 
j Calandra oryzce Linn. Family Calandridce. 

176 




Fig. 150. — The grain weevil {Calandra granaria) : 
a, beetle; h, larva; c, pupa; d, the rice weevil 
(C. oryza: beetle — all enlarged. (After Chit- 
tenden; U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO STORED GRAINS 



177 



hatching from this is without legs, somewhat shorter than the adult, 
white in color, and of a very robust build, being almost as broad 
as long. It soon devours the soft interior of the kernel and then 
changes to a pupa, from which the adult beetle emerges in about 
six weeks from the time the egg was laid. 

Only a single larva inhabits a kernel of wheat, but several 
will often be found in that of corn. Not only do the larvae injure 
the grain, but the beetles feed upon it, and then hollow out a shelter 
for themselves within the hull. The beetles are quite long-lived, 
and thus do considerable damage. The egg-laying period is 
equally long, and as there are three or four broods in the North 
and six or more in the South, it has been estimated that the prog- 
eny of one pair would amount to 6000 insects in a single season. 

Grain-beetles 

Another beetle very common in the granary, but of quite 
different appearance, is the Saw-toothed Grain-beetle* (Fig. 151). 




Fig. 151. — ^The saw-toothed grain beetle (Silvanus surinamensis) : a, adult 
beetle; h, pupa; c, larva— all enlarged; d, antenna of larva — still more 
enlarged; d, the red or square-necked grain beetle (Cathartus gemellatus 
Duv.) (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

It is a cosmopoUtan pest and is also nearly omnivorous. The 
beetle is only about one-tenth of an inch long, very much flattened, 
of a dark-brown color, and may be easily recognized by the six saw- 
like teeth on each side of the thorax. The larva is of a dirty- 
white color, and quite dissunilar to that of the granary weevil. 
* Silvanus surinamensis Linn. Family Cucujidce. 



178 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Having six legs to carry it about, it is not satisfied with a single 
seed, but runs about here and there, nibbling at several. When full 
grown the larva glues together several grains or fragments into a little 
case, and inside of this transforms to the pupa and then to the beetle. 
In early spring this life cycle requires from six to ten weeks, but in 
summer it is reduced to about twenty-five days. Thus there are 









Fig. 152. — The Cadelle (Tenehroides mauritanicus) : a, adult beetle with 
greatly enlarged antenna above; b, pupa; c, larva — all enlarged. (After 
Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

from three to six or more generations during a season, according 
to the latitude. 

The Red or Square-necked Grain-beetle* is about the same 
size as the last species, but is of a reddish-brown color, and the 
thorax is almost square, nearly as broad as the abdomen, and 
not notched on the sides. Tt breeds in corn in the field and in 
the granary, first destroying the germ, so that it is especially 

* Cathartus gemellatus Duv. Family Tenebrionidce. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO STORED GRAINS 



179 



injurious to seed-corn. It feeds mostly out of doors, though 
sometimes infesting the granary. 

The Foreign Grain-beetle* is of much the same general ap- 
pearance, but smaller and of a more robust appearance. It 
feeds upon a great variety of stored products as well as grain, 
but rarely becomes troublesome. 

The Cadellef also has the bad habit of first attacking the 
embryo or germ of the kernel, and going from one kernel to another, 
thus destroys a large number for seed purposes. It possesses, 
however, the good trait of feeding on other injurious grain- 
insects. The beetle is oblong, flat, nearly black, and about 
one-third of an inch long. The larva is of a whitish color, with a 
brown head, the thoracic segments are marked with brown, and 





Fig. 153. — The Mediterranean flour-moth (Ephestia kuehniella): a, moth; 
6, same from side, resting; c, larva; d, pupa — enlarged; e, abdominal 
joint of larva— more enlarged; /, larva, dorsal view. (After Chittenden, 
U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

the abdomen terminates in two dark horny processes. It is a 
fleshy grub, nearly three-fourths of an inch long when full grown. 

Flour- and Meal-moths 

The larvae of several small moths sometimes infest grain 
in store, but rarely do it serious damage, preferring the softer 
flour, meal and food-products. 

The most destructive of these is the Mediterranean Flour 
moth| (Fig. 153). This insect was practically unknown until 

* Cathartus advena Waltl. 

t Tenebroides mauritanicus Linn. Family Trogositidoe. 

X Ephestia kuehmella Zell. Family Pyralididcp. See W. G. Johnson, Ap- 
pendix 19th Report State Entomologist of Illinois, and F. L. Washburn, 
Special Report of the State Entomologist of Minnesota on the Mediter- 
ranean flour-moth. 



180 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



1877, but during recent years it has occasioned the loss of many 
thousands of dollars to mill-owners. It occurs throughout 
Europe, and is found in Mexico and Chili. It was first recognized 
in America in 1889, and has since done an increasing amount 
of damage in California, in New York and Pennsylvania, North 
Carohna, Alabama, New Mexico, and Colorado, and has become 
quite generally distributed. " The caterpillars form cylindrical 
silken tubes in which they feed, and it is in great part their habit 
of web-spinning that renders them so injurious where they obtain 
a foothold. Upon attaining full growth the caterpillar leaves 
its original silken domicile and forms a new web, which becomes 





Fig. 154. — The Indian meal-moth (Plodia interpunctella) : a, moth; b, pupa; 
c, caterpillar; /, same — dorsal view, somewhat enlarged; d, head, and 
e, first abdominal segment of caterpillar — more enlarged. (After Chit- 
tenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

a cocoon in which to undergo its transformations to pupa and 
imago. It is while searching for a suitable place for transforma- 
tion that the insect is most troublesome. The infested flour 
becomes felted together and lumpy, the machinery becomes 
clogged, necessitating frequent and prolonged stoppage, and result- 
ing in a short time in the loss of thousands of dollars in large 
establishments." 

The life cycle of this insect requires ordinarily about two 
months, but may be completed in thirty-eight days under the most 
favorable conditions. The adult moth measures a little less than 
an inch across the expanded wings. The fore-wings are of a lead- 
gray color, with transverse black markings, while the hind- 
wings are dirty whitish, with a darker border. 

The Indian Meal-moth* (Fig. 154) larvae resemble those of 
the grain-beetles in having a special liking for the embryo of 

* Plodia interpunctella Hbn. Family Pyralididoe. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO STORED GRAINS 



181 



wheat-grains. They spin a fine silken web as they go from seed 
to seed, to which they become attached, and to which is added a 
large amount of excrement, thus spoiling for food much more 
grain than is actually injured. 

The moth has a wing-expanse of an inch; the inner third 
of the fore-wings being a whitish-gray, and the outer portion 
reddish-brown, with a coppery lustre. 

The Meal Snout-moth* (Fig. 155) is of a light brown color, 




Fig. 155. — ^The meal snout-moth (PyraKs /arinaKs) : a, adult moth ; 6, larva; 
c, pupa in cocoon — twice natural size. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. 
Agr.) 

the thorax, base, and tips of the fore-wings being darker brown. 
The wings expand nearly an inch and are otherwise marked 
with whitish lines as shown in the figure. It is very similar to 
the last-mentioned species in its habits, constructing long tubes 
with silk and particles of the food in which it is living. The life- 
history is completed in about eight weeks, and four generations 
may occur in a year. The moisture of "heated" grain is most 
favorable for the development of this pest, and it need not be 
feared if grain is kept in a clean, dry place. 

The Pink corn-wormf has recently assumed importance in 
the southern states as an enemy of stored corn. It is a moth 
similar in shape to the Anguomois grain-moth, but smaller and 
different in color. Its wing expanse is less than one-half inch 
and its color is chestnut-brown with whitish-yellow markings. 
There are long fringes on the margins of both pairs of wings. 
The eggs are first laid on corn in the field, usually following injmy 
from the earworm or other insect. Later generations attack corn in 
the crib. The larvae are small pinkish caterpillars. They feed on 
grain and even on husks and cobs and spin webs wherever they go. 

* Pyralis farinalis Linn. Family Pyralididce. 
t Batrachedra rileyi Wals. Family Elachistidce. 



182 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



The Angoumois Grain-moth * 

By far the worst granary pest throughout the South is the 
" fly-weevil," or Angoumois grain-moth. 

History. — This insect is an importation from Europe and receives 
its name from the fact that in 1760 it " was found to swarm in all 
the wheat-fields and granaries of Angoumois and of the neighbor- 
ing provinces [of France], the afflicted inhabitants being thereby 
deprived of their principal staple, and threatened with famine 
and pestilence from want of wholesome bread." The insect 
was first noted in this country in North Carolina in 1730, and in 
1796 was so abundant as to extinguish a lighted candle when a 
granary was entered at night. It is essentially a southern insect, 

being very injuri- 
ous to stored corn 
in the Gulf States. 
Of late years it 
seems to be mov- 
ing steadily north- 
ward, being re- 
ported as injurious 
in central Pennsyl- 
vania and Ohio. 
Wheat, corn, oats, 
rye, barley, sor- 
FiG. 156. — The Angoumois grain-moth (Sitotroga cereal- ghum-s e e d, and 
ella): a, eggs; b, larva at work; c, larva, side view; 

d, pupa; €, moth; /, same, side view. (After Chitten- even cow-peas are 
den, U. S. Dept. Agr.) subject to injury. 

Life History. — The injury is not done by the moth, as might 
be reasonably supposed from the fact that it is the only form of 
the insect usuafly seen, but is done by the small caterpillars 
which feed within the grain, where they may be found during 
the winter. The caterpiflar eats to the surface of the kernel, 
but not through it, thus leaving a thin lid which the moth can 
easily push aside when it comes out in the spring, and then covers 
itself with a fine silken web. At this time the caterpfllar is 
usuafly fully grown and is about one-fifth of an inch long, of a white 
color, with the head yeflowish and harder, and having six jointed 

* Sitrotoga cerealella Oliv. Family Gelechiidoe. 

See J. L. King, Circular No. 1, Pennsylvania Dept. Agr. 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO STORED GRAINS 



183 



.A 



V^-- 



legs in front, a series of four pairs of fieshy pro-legs along the 
middle, and another pair of soft legs at 
the end of the body. With warm spring 
weather the caterpillar changes to a pupa, 
and about the time that the wheat comes 
into head the adult moth emerges. As soon 
as it emerges, whether outdoors or in a barn, 
the moth at once flies to the grain-field, 
where the eggs are deposited. The exact 
time at which the moths emerge varies, but 
occurs some time late in May or in June. 
The moths quite closely resemble the 
clothes-moth often found flying about 
houses. The wings are quite narrow, and 
when expanded measure about one-half an 
inch from tip to tip, being of a yellowish or 
buff color, marked Avith black. The eggs 
are laid in the longitudinal channel on the 
side of the grain. Each female lays from 
sixty to ninety eggs in lots of about twenty 
each, one lot thus being about enough to in- 
fest the kernels of a head. The eggs hatch 
in from four to seven days. The young cat- 
erpillars are at first very active and soon 
find tender places and bore into the 
kernels, leaving almost invisible openings. 
These caterpillars become full grown in 
about three weeks, just about the time the 
grain is mature. About harvest-time the 
second brood of moths appears. These lay 
their eggs during July, depositing them on 
the ripe heads if the harvest be a little de- 
layed, but on the wheat in stack if harvest 
is prompt. Usually the caterpillars hatch- 
ing from these eggs become full grown and 
remain in the grain over winter, but in 
warm seasons, especially if warm in Sept- 
ember or when the pest is unusually abun- 
dant, a third brood of moths appears 
early in September. These lay another 



«Ji 



■'""""-^■i" 



% 



Fig. 157. — Ear of pop- 
corn, showing work of 
Angoumois grain- 
moth. (After Riley.) 



184 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

batch of eggs about the middle of September, depositing them up- 
on the open ends of grain in stack or mow, which thus becomes 
more infested than that in the centre. In grain stacked outside, the 
caterpillars of this brood become full grown slowly and remain in 
the grain over winter, but if in the barn they grow faster and a 
fourth brood of moths appears about the middle of October, the 
moths being noticed in threshing. The insects continue to breed 
within doors all winter as long as any grain remains, though they 
become sluggish and cease feeding during cold weather. The 
number of broods is entirely dependent upon the latitude and 
weather conditions; in the South, where they can breed continu- 
ously, there being as many as eight in a year. 

Corn is frequently attacked, but not until it is ripe and husked, 
and then but rarely when husked in October and November and 
stored outdoors in slatted cribs. Seed-corn stored in barns, and 
in the South in almost any situation, is often badly injured. 

Aside from the loss in weight, grain when badly infested 
becomes unfit for milling purposes, and will even be refused by 
cattle and horses, which should not be urged to eat it, though 
hogs and fowls will readily consume it. 

Remedies. — Dr. J. B. Smith, in an interesting bulletin upon 
this pest, to which we are indebted for much of the above, advises 
as follows: "Thresh as soon after harvest as possible, and bulk in 
tight bins or in good sacks. [By "tight bins" are meant those 
which will not permit the entrance or exit of the moths.] If the 
grain is dry when harvested, it may be threshed at once; if not, as 
soon as it is in good condition. If the sacked grain is infested, 
there will not be wormy kernels sufficient to heat the grain. The 
moths cannot make their way out and are stifled. Nothing can 
come in from outside and the grain remains safe. The threshing 
itself kills many of the insects and jars and rubs off many of the 
eggs. If binned, the bins should be tight and the grain should be 
tested occasionally for any appreciable heating. If it heats per- 
ceptibly, it indicates considerable infestation, and it should be 
treated with carbon bisulfide at once, used at the rate of one 
drachm per cubic foot, or 1 pound for 250 cubic feet bin-space." 
Recent investigations have shown that more bisulfide will often 
be necessary. 

Those having wheat unthreshed, whether in stack or mow, 
should thresh at once, and treat as above directed, except that if 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO STORED GRAINS 185 

much of it is noticed to be wormy, it should be treated with carbon 
bisulfide at once, as soon as threshed, which if done thoroughly 
will prevent any further infestation that year. 

Barns and storehouses should be cleaned up and freed from all 
loose and scattered grain — chickens will help in this — before April 
1st, so that no moths will be allowed to develop and infest the 
grain in the field. Places where grain has been in stock the pre- 
vious season should be cleaned up by the aid of chickens. Thus if 
there is any probability of grain being infested, it should be kept 
tightly covered in the spring so as not to permit the spread of the 
moths to the fields. 

Prevention of " Weevil " 

Undoubtedly grain-insects can usually be more successfully 
combated by a proper housing of the grain. No matter how often 
the insects are destroyed in a granary, if the remainder of the barn 
is full of dust, sweepings, and refuse, as it generally is, on which 
the beetles can feed and in which they will breed, and if the gran- 
ary is not absolutely tight, as soon as the gas passes off the insects 
from the barn will again enter the granary, and soon it will be as 
badly infested as ever. 

Cleanliness. — " Cleanliness will accomplish much toward the 
prevention of injury from these pests, the cause of a great propor- 
tion of injuries in granaries, mills, elevators, and other structures 
where grain and feed are stored being directly traceable to a dis- 
regard of neatness. Dust, dirt, rubbish, and refuse material con- 
taining sweepings of grain, flour, and meal are too frequently per- 
mitted to accumulate and serve as breeding-places for a multitude 
of injurious insects. 

" The floors or corners and walls of the barn or storehouse 
should be frequently swept, and all material that has no commer- 
cial value burned." 

The Granary. — "The ideal farmer's granary, from the stand- 
point of insect ravages, should be built at some distance from 
other buildings, and the rooms constructed of matched floorings 
so as to be as near vermin-proof as possible. The doors should fit 
tightly, closing upon a rabbet, which may be covered with felt or 
packing, and the windows covered with frames of wire gauze to pre- 
vent the passage of insects. The floor, walls, and ceilings should 
be smooth, so as not to afford any lurking-places for the insects, 



186 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

and it would be well to have them oiled, painted, or whitewashed 
for further security. A coating of coal tar has been strongly 
recommended for the latter purpose." 

" The value of a cool place as a repository of grain has been 
known of old, and a building in which any artificial heat is em- 
ployed is undesirable for grain storage. The ' heating ' and fer- 
mentation of grain, as is well known, is productive of ' weevil, ' and 
this should be prevented by avoiding moisture and by ventilation. 

The storage of grain in large bulk is to be commended, as the 
surface layers only are exposed to infestation. This practice is 
particularly valuable against the moths, which do not penetrate 
far beneath the surface. Frequent agitation of the grain is also 
destructive to the moths, as they are unable to extricate them- 
selves from a large mass, and perish in the attempt. The true 
granary-weevils (small dark-brown beetles with long curved 
snouts, similar to the pea- weevil), however, penetrate more 
deeply, and although bulking is of value against them, it is not 
advisable to stir the grain, as it merely distributes them more 
thoroughly through the mass." — Chittenden 

Recent observations and experiments* have shown that in 
the southern states, at least, injury to corn from the forms of weevil 
which infest the ears in the field, as well as some corn ear worm 
injury, may be largely prevented by planting varieties of corn 
which produce ears covered with husks which extend beyond the 
tip of the ears and form a close sheath for the ear, leaving no 
opening for the entrance of the weevil. Since there is more hkeli- 
hood of infestation from several species of weevils on corn in the 
field in the South, the use of such varieties would seem to be good 
practice for that region. 

Destruction of " Weevil " 

'\Carhon Bisulfide. — " The simplest, most effective, and most 
inexpensive remedy for all insects that affect stored grain and 
other stored products is the bisulfide of carbon, a colorless liquid, 
with a strong disagreeable odor, which, however, soon passes 
away." At ordinary temperatures it vaporizes rapidly, forming a 
heavy gas, which is highly inflammable and a powerful poison. 

* E. A. Back, Farmers' Bufletin 1029, U. S. Dept. of Agr, 
t See W. E. Hinds, Farmers' Bulletin 799, U. S. Dept. Agr. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO STORED GRAINS 187 

Application. — It may be applied directly to the infested grain 
or seed without injury to its edibleness or viability by spraying 
with an ordinary watering-can having a fine rose nozzle. In 
moderately tight bins it is more effective, however, as it evaporates 
more slowly and diffuses more evenly, if placed in shallow dishes 
or pans, or on bits of cloth or cotton waste distributed about on 
the surface of the grain or infested material. The liquid volatil- 
' izes rapidly, and, being heavier than air, descends and permeates 
the mass of grain, killing all insects and other vermin present. 
The bin should then be covered with boards, canvas, or blankets, 
and allowed to remain at least twenty-four hours. If to be used 
for seed, it should not be left for over thirty-six hours ; but if not, 
leave it forty-eight hours, which will do it no injury for food 
After treating keep the grain covered to prevent reinfestation. 

Amount to Use. — It was formerly recommended that the bisul- 
fide be applied at the rate of 1 to 3 pounds to 100 bushels of grain 
or 1000 cubic feet of open space. Recent experiments, however, 
have shown the total inadequacy of this dosage. Experiments 
made by Hinds and Hunter* show that the effectiveness of the 
gas is in direct proportion to the temperature. Below 60° F. the 
fumigation is ineffective and inadvisable. A dosage which will 
kill practically all the weevil at 67° to 70° will kill but 60 to 70 per 
cent at 60° to 65°. They recommend the use of 5 pounds per 
1000 cubic feet where the room or bin is quite tight and the tem- 
perature is 70° or above. For open rooms and lower tempera- 
tures, the dosage must be largely increased and may not be profit- 
able. The above estimates are based upon the grain being in a 
cubical shape; if it is spread out shallow, more bisulfide will be 
necessary. 

Caution. — " Certain precautions should always be observed. 
The vapor of carbon bisulfide is deadly to all forms of animal 
life if inhaled in sufficient quantity, but there is no danger in 
inhaling a small amount. The vapor is highly inflammable, 
but with proper care that no fire of any kind, as, for example, 
a lighted cigar, lantern, or light of any kind, be brought into 
the vicinity until the fumes have entirely passed away, no trouble 
will be experienced." 

Hydrocyanic Acid Gas. — Mills and storehouses which needed 

* Hinds and Hunter, Journal of Economic Entomologv, Vol. Ill, p. 47: 
R. I. Smith, Bulletin 203, N. C. Agr. Exp. Sta. 



188 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

treatment were formerly fumigated with carbon bisulfide, which 
is still employed to a considerable extent, but this has been 
largely replaced by fumigation with hydrocyanic acid gas, which 
obviates the risk from fire. Directions for the use of this gas 
should be obtained from the entomologist of the State Experiment 
Station or from the Bureau of Entomology of the U. S. Depart- 
ment of Agriculture. 

Sulfur Fumes. — Professor R. I. Smith (1. c.) has made experi- 
ments with sulfur dioxid, produced by burning sulfur slightly wet 
with alcohol, and finds that it will effectively kill grain insects 
but injures the germinating power of the grain. " It was found that 
the fumes produced by burning 2^ pounds of sulfur either in a 
moist or dry atmosphere of 1000 cubic feet space, for twenty 
hours, would kill all exposed adult insects and practically all the 
young stages in the grain, but that this also destroyed its germinat- 
ing power. . . While this treatment cannot be recommended 
for general fumigation, there is no doubt of its being the easiest 
and cheapest method of fumigating corn cribs, granaries and 
similar places whenever they are being cleaned out and freed 
of insects in preparation for the reception of more grain." 

Heat. — The heating of grain was one of the earliest means 
known of combating grain insects, but has been little used in this 
country. Recently, however. Prof. Geo. A. Dean of the Kansas 
Agricultural Experiment Station,* has shown that by super- 
heating mills they may be rid of insect pests much more quickly 
and cheaply than by fumigation, and with no risk from fire, or 
from cyanide poisoning. His experiments show that if the 
temperature surrounding an insect be maintained above 120° F., 
with a normal amount of moisture, that in a very few minutes it 
will be killed. This has become one of the most popular methods 
of cleaning mills and may be used for small quantities of grain 
where there are facilities for heating it or placing it in a super- 
heated room, but probably carbon bisulfide fumigation will be 
found more practicable for small amounts. 

* Geo. A. Dean, Journal of Economic Entomology, Vol. IV, p. 142 and 
Bulletin 189, Kansas Agr. Expt. Station. 



CHAPTER XI 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CLOVER AND ALFALFA.* 
The Clover Root-borer f 

The Clover Root-borer is practically the only insect pest 
which seriously injures clover roots. It has long been known as 
a clover pest in Europe, but was first noticed in this country in 
western New York in 1876, whence it has spread southward to 
West Virginia and westward to Illinois and southern Michigan, 
and has also been injurious in Oregon. 

Life History. — During the winter the beetles may be found 
hibernating in their burrows in infested clover roots. They are 
not readily distinguishable, for they are scarcely one-eighth 






Fig. 158. — ^The clover root-borer {H7jlastinus obscurus): a, adult, natural 
size at right; b, larva or grub; c, pupa — much enlarged. (After Webster, 
U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

inch long, and are of a reddish-brown color much like that of the 

burrow. With the warmer weather of spring they commence 

* See The Insect Pests of Clover and Alfalfa, J. W. Folsom, 25th Report 
of the State Entomologist of Illinois, pp. 41-124, and Bulletin 134, Illinois 
Agr. Expt. Station. 

t Hylastinus obscurus Marsham. Family Scolytidae. 

189 



190 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



burrowing and feeding in the roots, and during late May and 
early June the females deposit their eggs along the sides of the 
tunnels. "The female gouges out a shallow cavity, more often in 
the crown of the plant, sometimes at the sides of the root even 
2 or 3 inches below the crown, and in this 
places singly, but not far separated, about 
a half dozen pale whitish, elliptical, very 
minute eggs. These hatch in about a 
week, and the larvse for a time feed in 
the excavation made by the mother, 
but soon burrow downward into the root, 
and before the 1st of August, the majority 
of them have become full-grown, and 
passed into the pupal stage. By October 
nearly all have become fully developed 
beetles, but they make no attempt to 
leave the plant until the following spring." 
The spread of the insect occurs very large- 
ly in the spring when the beetles fly from 
field to field, seeking uninfested plants in 
which to perpetuate their kind. 

It has been observed that alsike clover is 
not so badly injured as the mammoth and 
common red clover, on account of the 
fibrous roots and the tendency of its tap- 
root to divide. In Europe alfalfa is injured, 
but little injury has yet been reported to 
that crop in this country, as yet. 

"While an infested clover plant sooner 
or later succumbs to an attack by this in- 
sect, life may be lengthened or shortened by 
meteorological conditions. Thus, if the 

showing work of clover gpHng or early summer is very dry, the 

root-borer. Slightly en- ^ ^^ , . /, . ^. ,\ • r 

larged. (After Web- plants begm to dry m patches late m June, 

ster,) U. S. Dept. Agr. ^s soon as the hay crop is removed; but 

if there is much rain during this period, the weakened plants may 

continue to live until winter, dying out before spring. In either 

case the farmer is likely to be misled and attribute the loss 

to the weather." Clover is practically exempt from attack the 




Fig. 159. — Clover root 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CLOVER AND ALFALFA 191 



first year as the roots are not large enough to accommodate the 
insects, and it is not until the second year that the plants are 
destroyed. 

Control. — The only effective means of control suggested is 
summer fallowing as soon as the hay crop has been removed. 




Fig. 160. — Present known distribution in the United States of the .clover-root 
curculio. (After F. M. Webster, L. C.) 

The field should then be plowed up at once, before the larvse 
have transformed to pupse, so that the hot sun, and dry winds, 




Fig. 161.— Stages of the clover-root curculio. (After Webster, L. C, from 
Wildermuth): a, adult; 6, larva; c, pupa. 

will dry out the roots of the clover and thus starve the larvae, 
thereby preventing their developing and migrating to other 
fields. Clover fields should not be allowed to stand over two 



192 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

years in infested localities. No injury seems to be done in pas- 
tures. A system of rotation in which the crop is mowed for hay 
and seed the first year, and pastured and then broken up the 
second year, should keep the pest under control. 

An insect very similar in life-history and nature of injury is 
the Clover-root Curculio.* This insect is also a snout beetle 
but belongs to a different family. In spite of this, the adults 
and larvae will both probably be confused by the ordinary 
observer. The curcuHo has been observed working on alfalfa. f 

The Clover Leaf-weevU t 

The clover leaf-weevil is a stout, oval beetle, about one-third 
inch long, with a long, thick snout. It is of a brownish color, 
with several narrow gray lines above and broad gray stripes 
on each side, and with twenty rows of small, deep punctures 
on the wing-covers. It also is a native of Europe and made its 
first appearance in the same section of western New York as the 
last species, about 1881. Since then it has spread eastward to 
Rhode Island and Vermont, southward to North Carolina and 
West Virginia and westward to Wisconsin and Illinois. Every 
few years the weevils and their larvae destroy much of the foliage 
in restricted localities, but rarely are they very injurious the next 
season. Red clover, alfalfa, and white clover are preferred in the 
order named; in Illinois the mammoth and alsike are also eaten. 

Life Hitsory. — In early fall the female beetles lay their eggs 
in crevices among the stems near the base of the plant, which 
hatch in from three to six weeks. The young larvae which hatch 
from them are without legs, but manage to climb by means of 
the prominent tubercles on the lower surface of the body. They 
are light yellowish-green, becoming deeper green as they grow 
older, the head is brown, and down the middle of the back is 
a white or pale yellow stripe bordered with reddish. The larvae 
become partially grown before winter sets in, when they hiber- 
nate in rubbish or just under the soil until spring, when they 
continue to feed upon the foliage and become full-grown in May 
and early June. They feed mostly at night and are hardly 

* Sitones hispidulis Fabricius. Family CurculionidcB. 

t See F. M. Webster, Farmers' Bulletin 649, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 

J Phytonomus punctatus Fab. Family Curculionidoe. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CLOVER AND ALFALFA 193 

noticeable in the day, when they he protected around the base 
of the plant, lying curled up head to tail. The injury to the 
foliage is quite characteristic, the edges of the leaves being eaten 
in a regular manner as shown in Fig. 162. When full grown the 
larva buries itself just under the surface of the soil and makes 
an oval cell, in which it spins a delicate cocoon consisting of a 
coarse network of pale yellow threads, which later turn brown, 




Fig. 162. — Clover leaf -weevil {Phytonomus pundatiis Fabr.) : a, egg magnified 
and natural Size; bbbb, larvae; c, recently hatched larva; d, head of 
larva; e, jaws of the same; /, cocoon; g, same magnified to show the 
meshes; h, pupa; i, weevil, natural size; j, the same magnified; k, top 
view of the beetle; I, tarsus and claws of the beetle; m, antenna of the 
beetle. (After Riley.) 

as shown in Fig. 162, Occasionally the cocoon is made on the 
surface or among the bases of the stems. In this the pupal 
stage is passed, lasting two or three weeks; the beetles being 
most common in July and August. The damage which the 
beetles do to the second crop of clover is fully equal that done 
by the larvae to the first, and is more apparent because the soil 
is then dry and the plant grows more slowly. 



194 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

That this insect has not become a more serious pest is due to 
the fact that as often as it becomes excessively abundant the 
larvae are almost completely destroyed by a fungous disease.* 
When affected by this disease the larvae climb to the top of a 
blade of grass, curl tightly around the tip, and soon die, first 
becoming covered with a white mold and then turning to a jelly- 
like mass. The spores of the fungus become scattered to healthy 
individuals, which soon succumb, so that before long nearly all 
are destroyed, and rarely do enough survive to cause trouble 
the next year. 

Frequent reports are received of poisoning of cattle which 
have fed on clover having numbers of the larvae which have died 
from this fungus. Accounts vary, some reporting serious sick- 
ness and even death as the result and others, probably more 
authentic, reporting merely temporary sickness. In any case, 
it will be well to keep cattle from the infested plants. 

Control. — On account of this disease repeated injury has been 
so rare that no means of artificial control has been necessary. 
"The necessity for the employment of any remedy does not 
appear until the clover is well on in its second year's growth," 
says Dr. Folsom (I.e.). "If damage is anticipated, however, it 
would seem advisable to pasture the clover lightly or to clip 
back in the spring; this does not hurt the clover, is highly desir- 
able as a means of forestalling the attacks of some other clover 
pests (see page 201), and might check the larvae of the leaf-weevil 
somewhat, though it is possible that they would subsist on the 
cut stems until the new growth started; and in cold weather they 
can live a long time without any food. After the second season 
red clover should be plowed under to get rid of this pest, as well 
as for other agricultural reasons." 

The Alfalfa Weevil f 

In recent years a first cousin of the last species has been 
introduced into Utah, where it has become firmly estabhshed 
and promises to become the most serious obstacle to alfalfa culture. 
The alfalfa weevil is a native of Europe, western Asia, and northern 

* Em'piLsa sphceroperma Fres. 

t Phytonomus posticus Gyll. Family Curculionidce. See E. G. Titus, 
Bulletin 110 and Circular 10, Utah Agr. Exp. Sta., and ^F. M. Webster, Circu- 
lar 137, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CLOVER AND ALFALFA 



195 



Africa, where it is common but never very seriously injurious. It 
was first noticed in America near Salt Lake City, Utah, in 1904, and 
has been increasing and spreading until it now occupies an area of 
fully 100 square miles around Salt Lake City. The beetles are from 
one-eighth to three-sixteenth inch long, dark brown, marked with 
black and gray hairs which gives them a mottled appearance as 
shown in Fig. 165. These hairs or scales are gradually rubbed 




rCB. I MAR. I APR. I MAY JUNE JULY | AUcT SEPT. | DCT. 



syvM 'A\aVX 



^^y^t^^^ggr^g^VBa'^SAl &55a (jf^iifi^ -p^C^; p.Wm\,ar^r>o -nLA»VX. 



Fig. 163. — Chart showing the life history of the Alfalfa Weevil. (From H. R. 
Hagan, Utah Agr. Expt. Sta. Circular 31. 

off, SO that in spring many individuals are entirely black with 
small grayish spots. 

Life History. — The beetles seek shelter for hibernation before 
frost in the autumn, either in the crowns of the alfalfa plants, 
or under thick grass, weeds, rubbishy leaves, or in hay or straw 
stacks. Often they winter in barns where the hay is stored, the 
floors of which are often found covered with the beetles in 
winter and spring. Ifc is estimated that fully 80. per cent of the 
weevils survive the winter in Utah. In the spring the beetles 
emerge and attack the young alfalfa plants as soon as there is 
sufficient food for them, usually late in March. The females 
commence laying eggs in early April and continue oviposition 
until early July. In early spring while the plants are small the 



196 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

females often push their eggs down between the leaves, but the 
usual method is to insert them in punctures made in the stem. 

This puncturing of the 
young stems often re- 
sults in considerable 
damage in early spring. 
A single alfalfa plant 
which had escaped from 
cultivation was found 
to contain 127 of these 
punctures, and as each 
puncture contains ten 
or fifteen eggs, this plant 
probably bore some 
1200 eggs, although it 
was exceptional. 

The eggs hatch in 
about ten days and 
the small white larvse 
make their way to the 
leaves in which they 
eat small holes. They 
soon turn a decidedly green color, and when full grown are about 
one-half inch long with a white stripe down the middle of the back 




Fig. 164. — The alfalfa weevil, adults, clustering 
on and attacking sprig of alfalfa — natural size . 
(After Webster, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 




Fig. 165. — The alfalfa weevil {Phytonomus posticus): a, eggs; b, cocoon; 
c, larva; d, pupa; e, adult — all much enlarged. (After Webster, U. S. 
Dept. Agr.) 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CLOVER AND ALFALFA 197 

and somewhat curved as shown in Fig. 165. They attack the 
young leaves and crown so that a badly infested field will not get 
over six inches high; too short to mow. The larvae are most 
abundant in May and decrease through June. When full grown 
the larvae crawl or drop to the ground and spin their cocoons 
in the dead leaves or rubbish. The cocoon is globular and com- 
posed of a network of rather coarse white threads, Fig. 165. 
In it the larva transforms to a pupa, which stage lasts from 
one to two weeks, when the adult beetle emerges. 

From early to midsummer the beetles become more and more 
abundant, and not only feed on the fresh growth, but attack the 
bark of the stems so that where excessively abundant they totally 
destroy the second crop. 

"The entire life of the insect, from the deposition of the egg 
to the emergence of the adult, may be anywhere from forty to 
seventy days, while the beetle itself may live, including the winter, 
from ten to fourteen months." — Webster. 

Inasmuch as literally milHons of the beetles have been gath- 
ered by machines from a single acre, and as the beetles have been 
found in considerable numbers on freight and passenger trains, 
it is highly probable that the pest will be spread by the several 
trunk-lines of railroad which pass through the infested region, as 
in many places alfalfa has escaped from fields and grows as a 
weed along the railway tracks. It is, therefore, highly important 
that alfalfa growers be on their guard against this pest and take 
prompt measures for its destruction wherever it may gain a 
foothold. The weevils also spread rapidly by flying in spring 
and summer, which migration is aided by the winds. They may 
also be spread in articles shipped from an infested region and 
on wagons or automobiles. 

Control. — The methods of control have not, as yet, been 
satisfactorily determined, though the entomologist of the Utah 
Agricultural Experiment Station, E. G. Titus, from whose report 
the following summary is taken, has made extensive experiments 
with various methods. 

Old alfalfa fields are always worst injured, and fields should 
not be left down in alfalfa over about seven years. Thorough 
disking in the early spring has proved to be one of the essential 
factors in securing a good crop, as it increases the stand and 



198 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



stimulates a quick growth which enables the plants better to 
withstand the weevil injury. The use of a brush drag with which 
a spike-tooth harrow is combined has been found an excellent 
means of kilhng the larvae, as they are knocked to the ground 
and large numbers killed by the fine dust. If the field is very 
hard it is advisable to disk it before using the drag. After the 
use of the drag, the fields should be watered where there is 
irrigation. In summarizing the methods of control, Professor 
Titus recommends: " That alfalfa be disked in early spring to 

stimulate it to better growth. 
That the first growth be cut 
when the most of the eggs 
have been laid (middle of 
May) and then brush-drag 
the field thoroughly. Fields 
should be brush-dragged 
again after the first crop has 
has been cut. All weeds 
and rubbish should be clean- 
ed from the fields, yards, 
ditches and fence rows so 
that there will be less op- 
portunity for the weevils to 
find winter shelter. Alfalfa 
should not be allowed to 
grow more than seven or 
eight years in infested 
districts." 

Quarantine measures to prevent the spread are matters of 
local and state jurisdiction but are of the highest importance 
to the alfalfa growers of the country. 




Fig. 166.- 



-The Clover-mite 
pratensis). 



{Bryohia 



The Clover-mite * 

The Clover-mite is nearly related to the common red spider 
of greenhouses, with which it is often confused, belonging to the 
same family of vegetable-feeding mites. It is, however, about 
twice the size of the red spider, being four one-hundredths inch 

* Bryohia -pratensis Garman. Family Tetranychidoe. See C. L. Marlatt, 
Circular 19, 2d Ser., Division of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CLOVER AND ALFALFA 199 

long. Though known as the clover mite, on account of its feed- 
ing upon that plant, yet this insect was first known as, and 
is still, an important enemy of fruit-trees, more especially on the 
Pacific coast, but also in other sections of the country. The most 
injury seems to have been done to clover in the Central States as 
far south as Tennessee, though it has suffered somewhat even 
in the East. 

When attacked by the mite the leaves of clover or fruit- 
trees become yellow and have a sickly appearance, as if affected 
with a fungous disease. Especially upon the upper sides of the 
tender leaves of clover the juices are extracted over irregular 
areas, looking more or less hke the burrows of some leaf-mining 
larvae. Owing to the small size of the mites they may be doing 
considerable damage to the foliage and yet remain unnoticed; 
but in the egg stage the pest is much more readily detected and 
attacked. In the more northern States the eggs are laid in the 
fall, and do not hatch until the next spring. Farther south, 
however, the adult mites hibernate over winter. The eggs are 
of a reddish color, laid upon the bark of trees, especially in the 
crotches, and in the West are sometimes so thickly placed as 
to cover considerable areas two or three layers deep. 

When the adult mites leave the clover-fields in the fall to 
find hibernating quarters upon fruit-trees for the winter, they 
often become quite a nuisance by invading dweUing-houses 
which are in their path. This is more particularly the case 
throughout the Mississippi Valley. 

Remedies. — The only practical way of protecting clover from 
the mite is by destroying the eggs and hibernating mites upon 
the fruit-trees in winter. This may be done by burning all the 
prunings and thoroughly spraying the trees with kerosene emul- 
sion diluted with five parts of water, or with miscible oils or 
lime-sulfur mixture. Such a spraying will also protect the fruit- 
trees from the mite, and will destroy numerous other insects, 
such as the pear-leaf blister-mite, which hibernates upon the 
trees. Such small insects, so minute as usually to escape notice, 
are often responsible for a poor growth, and should be properly 
checked whenever known to be injurious. 



200 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



The Clover-seed Midge * 

The Clover-seed Midge seems to occur wherever red and 
white clover is grown in this country, and is a pest which must 
be taken into consideration in raising seed, for frequently it is 
not recognized as the cause of the failure of the seed crop. Alsike 
clover, and probably mammoth clover, is practically uninjured, 
as it flowers enough later to escape attack, nor is alfalfa infested. 

Life History. — The parent of all this trouble is a small midge, 
one-twelfth inch long, with black head and thorax and reddish 





Fig. 167. — ^The clover-flower midge (Dasyneura leguminicola): a, enlarged 
side view of female, with scales denuded, to show more clearly the struc- 
ture; b, head, more highly magnified, to show structure of the eye, palpi, 
and basal joints of antennae; c, tip of ovipositor, highly magnified and 
showing at end of next to last joint the manner in which it is clothed with 
minute hairs; d, highly magnified antennal joints, their minute hairy 
clothing shown on the lower one; 2, a, larva enlarged, ventral view; 
h, head retracted, highly magnified. (After Riley.) 

abdomen, so small, indeed, that it will rarely be noticed. The 
antennse have sixteen or seventeen segments, and the wings 
have but few veins, as shown in Fig. 167. The female bears a 
slender retractile ovipositor Avhich, when extended from the tip 
of the abdomen, is fully as long as the body, while the tip of the 
abdomen of the male is furnished with clasping organs. The 
midges appear in late spring just as the clover commences to 
head. The eggs are laid among the hairy spines of the clover- 
head or beneath the bracts around it, are yellowish to orange 

* Dasyneura leguminicola Lintner. Family Cecidomyiidce. Also called 
the Clover-flower Midge. See Farmers' Bulletin 971, U. S. Dept. Agr. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CLOVER AND ALFALFA 201 

in color, of an oval shape, and about one one-hundredth inch 
long. Upon hatching the maggot works its way into the open 
end of a floret, where it sucks the forming seed, and prevents 
the petals of the floret from expanding, so that although some 
of the flowers in the head will bloom, the field as a whole does 
not blossom as usual. The maggot is footless, white to orange- 
red in color, and about one-tenth inch long when full grown. 
Upon becoming grown in late June and the first week of July 
the maggots enter the soil and just below the surface make 
tough, oval, silken cocoons, in which they pupate. The pupal 
stage lasts about three weeks or more, and the flies of the second 
generation appear in Central Illinois in late July and early August, 
being abundant as the second crop of clover heads appear. The 
eggs are laid in the clover heads and hatch in about three days, 
and the second generation of maggots do the worst damage to 
the seed in late August and early September; in the same manner 
as did the first generation. They become full grown by frost and 
either hibernate as full-grown larvae, in which case they pupate 
early the next spring, or pupate before frost and pass the winter 
as pupae in the soil. 

Control. — Fortunately this pest may be very readily controlled 
by adapting the methods of harvesting so as to destroy the devel- 
oping maggots. If clover is grown alone it should be cut early 
before the maggots have become mature This results in drying, 
up the food plant and thus destroying the larvae and hastens the 
development of the second crop of clover heads, so that the midges 
of the second generation have but few green heads in which to lay 
their eggs. Cutting need not be done until the field is fairly fresh 
with bloom, but should not be delayed until the flowers commence 
to wither. Where timothy and clover are grown together they 
should be pastured lightly or chpped back in May, which will 
result in bringing both the first and second blooming after the 
greatest abundance of the midges. As the midges do not travel 
far, it would seem advisable to "prevent the sporadic heading of 
first-year clover by mowing it back a few weeks after small grains 
have been harvested, at a time when growth is vigorous, but yet 
sufficiently early to permit considerable growth before frost sets 
in. Volunteer clover should always be cut, as it affords a rich 
nursery for all kinds of clover insects." — Folsom. 



202 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



The Clover-seed Chalcid * 

Evidence accumulates that the shortage of the clover-seed 
crop may frequently be due to the larva of a little chalcis-fly 

which hollows out the 
ripening seed, leaving 
it brown, brittle and 
hollow, so that the af- 
fected hulls are blown 
away with the chaff in 
threshing. As there is 
no evidence of the pest 
in the appearance of 
the heads, and as the 
worst affected seed is 
thus overlooked i n 
threshing, its work will 
often evade detection. 




Fig. 168. — The clover-seed chalcis {Bruchophagus 
funebris): adult female, much enlarged; 
antenna of male at left, more enlarged. 
(After Webster, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



If the seed crop is short it will be well to examine seed for the 
larvae; many of the seed will be found shriveled and misshapen, 
and frequently considerable numbers of the adults will issue from 
the seed soon after threshing. 

The adult is a small, wasp-like fly one-twelfth to one-sixteenth 
inch long, black in color, and with four wings, the hind-wings very 
small and the fore-wings with but a single vein. It belongs to a 
family almost all of which are parasitic on other insects, and for 
many years it was 
thought to be a para- 
site of the clover-seed ^/,, W 
midge, until its true 
role was discovered. 
In recent years exam- 
inations o f ripening 
heads from all parts of 
the country show it is ° ^ " ^ 

nrnhflhlv Hiqfribiitpd Fig. 169.— The clover-seed chalcis: a, egg— highly 
probably dlStribUtea j^^gnified; 6, larva an, head more enlarged; c, 
wherever clover is pupa — much enlarged. (After Webster, U. S. 
grown and that from Dept. Agr.) 

* Bruchophagus funebris Howard. Family Chalddidoe. 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CLOVER AND ALFALFA 203 

20 to 80 per cent of the seed is often destroyed. Both red and 
crimson clovers are attacked, and a recent bulletin * from the 
Department of Agriculture states that the insect is actually 
threatening to destroy the alfalfa seed industry in certain sections 
which formerly produced it in quantity. 

Life History. — The winter is passed by the fully grown larvae 
in seed on the ground. The adults emerge in the spring, the maxi- 
mum appearing about June 10th in central Illinois, according to 
Dr. Folsom, to whom we are indebted for the most careful study 
of the pest. The females deposit their eggs in the soft seed, just 
as the floret is withering, being unable to penetrate the seed after 
it has hardened. The egg is whitish, about .01 inch long, and 
with a peculiar tail-hke appendage (Fig. 169). The maggot-like 
larva feeds upon the seed, gradually hollowing it out, and when 
full grown is about one-twelfth inch long, stout and footless, 
with a small head. The pupal stage is passed within the seed 
and a second generation of adults emerges about the middle of 
August. These lay their eggs in the second growth, and some 
of the adults from these appear the same season and the rest 
not until the following year. There seem to be at least three 
generations a year in central Illinois, but the life history is com- 
plicated by the irregularity in the time of development, though 
the greatest numbers of adults appear about June 10th and 
August 10th, just as the clover-seed is green. 

Control. — Mr. T. D. Urbahns, in the bulletin mentioned, 
recommends cutting the seed crop promptly and stacking it as 
soon as possible, using well cleaned seed, destroying burr-clover 
and cleaning up of waste land as well as destruction of screenings 
from the thresher and winter cultivation as being practices likely 
to reduce the damage from the chalcis. He particularly recom- 
mends that infested crops be harvested, even if they are of no 
value for seed, since, if they are left standing and pastured they 
will infest a whole locahty. 

The Clover-seed Caterpillar f 

"In its ability to diminish the seed crop, this pest ranks with 

the seed-midge and the seed-chalcid. Attacking a clover head 

that is green or partly in bloom, the httle caterpillar eats out a 

* Farmers' Bulletin 636, U.JS. Dept. Agr. 

t Enarmonia interstinctana Clem. Family Grapholithidce. 



204 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



cavity in the head, destroying many of the unopened buds and 
some of the tender green seeds, and spoihng the head as a whole. 
When no young clover heads are at hand, the caterpillar feeds 
on tender green leaves at the crown of the plant." — Folsom. 
Red clover is the principal food plant, but white, alsike, and 
probably mammoth clovers are also affected. The published 
records show that it occurs in the Northeastern States southwest 
to Missouri, but it doubtless occurs elsewhere where clover is 
grown, as it might readily be carried in hay. 

Life History. — The adult is a pretty Uttle brown moth, with 
a wing expanse of two-fifths inch, with silvery markings as shown 

in Fig. 170, the most conspicuous 
marks forming a double crescent 
when the wings are closed on the 
back. The moths appear about 
the end of May in central Illinois, 
or just as the clover is coming in- 
to bloom, being active in early 
evening, when the females lay 
their eggs in the heads. The egg 
is circular in shape, about .01 inch 
in diameter, yellowish-white in 
color, and hatches in five or six 
Fig. 170— Clover-seed caterpillar {En- days. In first-year clover that has 
annonia interstindana): a cater- ^ot headed and in second-year 
pillar: o, pupa; c, moth, all much 

enlarged: d, moth natural size, clover recently c u t , the eggs are 
(After Osborn.) jg^j^j ^^ young stems and leaflets 

at the base of the plant, where the larvae stay. 

"Hatching usually at the base of a green clover-head; the 
larva eats into the head, destroying the green florets as it goes. 
A small green head is often destroyed entirely, before it is many 
days old; a larger head is injured only locally at first, remaining 
green on one side, while the other and unaffected side may come 
into full bloom." Judging from the appearance of the head the 
work might be that of the seed-midge, but whereas it is hidden 
away in a single floret, this caterpillar makes a large dirty excava- 
tion involving many florets, and is readily found by tearing open 
the head. The caterpillar attacks the bases of the florets, includ- 
ing the semifluid ovules, but does not attack seeds which have 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CLOVER AND ALFALFA 205 

hardened. "Even when the direct injury is confined to a portion 
of the clover-head, the entire head is ruined, for it at length dries 
up and loses the rest of the florets, leaving only the dead and 
brown receptacle. Less conspicuous, though not inconsiderable, 
is the injury at the crown of the plant, done chiefly in September 
and October, by caterpillars of the same species feeding upon the 
leaves." — Folsom. The total injury varies greatly, but not infre- 
quently 20 per cent of the heads are infested, and in Iowa infesta- 
tion has sometimes been exceedingly severe. In any event, every 
head destroyed means the loss of more than one hundred seeds. 

The larvse become full grown in four to five weeks. The full 
grown caterpillar is about one-third inch long and varies in color 
from dirty-white tinged with green to orange, according to the 
food. The larva spins an oval white silken cocoon, two-fifths 
inch long, either in the head or at the surface of the ground, 
which is more or less covered with bits of excrement and floral 
tissue. The pupa is one-fifth inch long, brown, with the thorax 
and wing-cases darker, and with two transverse rows of teeth 
on the back of the abdominal segments except the last, which 
bears six stout blackish hooks at the tip. The pupal stage lasts 
two to three weeks and a second generation of moths emerges 
about the third week of July (in central IlHnois). The hfe cycle 
is repeated in the same manner and a third generation of moths 
appears about September 1st. The larvae of the last brood feed 
either in immature clover-heads or at the crown of the plant. 
Most of them become full grown and transform into pupae, in 
which stage they hibernate over winter, while others become full 
grown, but fail to pupate and hibernate under rubbish. 

Control. — Cutting and storing the hay crop early in June as 
advised for the clover-seed midge will kill the larvae while still 
in the heads. "The hay should be handled hghtly and stacked 
or stored as soon as possible. Osborn and Gossard * have at- 
tested the value of this method, and have given these further 
recommendations: (1) Cut volunteer clover m early June and 
dispose of the heads speedily; (2) do not allow clover to run for 
more than two years; (3) sow seed on land remote from old 
fields; (4) pasture clover in the fall of the first year; (5) plow 

* Osborn and Gossard, Insect Life, Vol. IV, p. 254; Bulletins 14 and 15, 
Iowa Agr. Exp. Sta.; 22d Report Entomological Society of Ontario, p. 74. 
Gossard, H. A., Bulletin 19, Iowa Agr. Exp. Sta. 



206 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



an old clover-field under in October or November or in early- 
spring, then harrow and roll. These practices operate at the 
same time against several other clover pests." — Folsom. 

The Clover-hay Worm * 

The Clover-hay Worm attac^ks stacked or stored clover, par- 
ticularly where it is held over a year or where placed on old hay, 
eating much of the lower layers and rendering it unfit for food. 









- -t-i 








■ 4 


1 




^'^'^yf- 








^^*^=*'^«*i^-^ 





Fig. 171. — Clover-hay worm, greatly enlarged. (After Folsom.) 
It has been known to be injurious from Kansas eastwaid, but 
occurs throughout most of North America, as well as parts of 
Europe, Asia, and Africa. 





Fig. 172. — The clover-hay worm moth, wings expanded (after Folsom) and 
at rest (after Pettit) — enlarged. 

"The larvae attack the bottom of a clover stack to a height 
of 2 feet or more from the ground; similarly, in the barn, they 
occur next the floor. They interweave the hay with white silken 
webs, intermixed with black grains of excrement. . . ; they 
reduce much of the hay to chaff, and their webs give the hay 

* Hypsopygia costalis Fab. Family Pyralididce. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CLOVER AND ALFALFA 207 

the appearance of being mouldy; in fact, such hay actually 
becomes mouldy if it has been lying near the ground. This hay 
is refused by horses and cattle and is fit only to be burnt. When 
the hay is removed, swarms of wriggling brown caterpillars are 
left." The work of the caterpillars is usually noticed in late 
winter and spring. 

Life History. — The moths appear from the middle of June 
until early July in the Northern States and most of the first 
generation have disappeared by the end of July. The moths 
have a wing expanse just under an inch, with silky, wings tinged 
with purplish above, margined with orange and fringed with 
golden-yellow. On each side of the fore-wings are two large, 
golden spots which divide the anterior margin into thirds and 
continue backward as narrow lilac lines (Fig 172). The hind- 
wings are marked by two transverse, wavy, straw-colored lines. 

As soon as some clover-hay is found the female deposits her 
eggs and the caterpillars feed upon it. When full grown they 
are about three-quarters inch long, of a dull-brown color. The 
segments are divided by a transverse groove, and each bears 
several shining areas, with a fine white hair in each. White 
silken cocoons, one-half inch long, covered with bits of hay and 
excrement, are made by the larvae in the hay or in cracks and 
crevices of the barn, in which they transform to pupae, which 
are of a honey-yellow color, with the parts clearly defined by 
the darker color of the sutures. The moths of the second brood 
emerge from the middle of August until September 1st, but may 
be found flying until late October. Caterpillars of all sizes may 
be found in barns throughout the winter and pupate in the spring. 

Control. — Usually no serious injury is done except where 
clover-hay is kept over the second year or longer. When it is 
fed out each spring, before the next crop is harvested, there is 
no food for the young caterpillars, and they perish before the 
new crop comes in. Consequently mows should be cleaned out 
each spring. New clover-hay should never be placed on top of 
old hay, and stacks should be placed at some little distance 
from the old stacks if possible. Burn up the refuse from old 
stacks, or what remains in the bottom of the mow. Stacks 
should be raised above the ground on a foundation of logs or 
rails, so as to keep the bottom as dry and cool as possible, as 



208 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



the caterpillars love warmth and moisture. It has been found 
that salting the hay for 2 or 3 feet at the bottom will prevent 
injury, and many farmers salt their clover-hay, using about two 
quarts of salt to the ton. 

The Clover Leafhopper * 

The Clover Leafhopper is an insect which may be found in 
clover and alfalfa fields over a wide range. It is a very small 
insect, hke most common leafhoppers, and its injury is widely 
distributed, so that it often attracts no notice, but is none the 
less real. The insects are slender forms, one-eighth inch in 
length and of a grayish color with darker markings. They hop 
actively when disturbed and may, at times, be noticed in clouds 
when one walks through a clover field. 

Injury. — The injury is caused in two ways. First, they suck 
the sap from the stems and foliage of the plant and, later, they 




»U\.vo\tA(X 



Fig. 173. — The clover leaf hopper (Agallia sanguinolenta) : a, adult; b, nymph, 
side view; c, nymph, dorsal view; d, face; e, elytron; /, female geni- 
talia; g, male genitalia. All enlarged. (After Osborn and Ball, from 
Gibson, I. c.) 

puncture the tissues and deposit their eggs within them, the 
result being irregular swellings which interfere with the growth. 

Life History. — There are at least three generations but they 
are more or less indistinguishable on account of over-lapping. 
They hibernate as adults. The young or nymphs resemble the 
adults in a general way but are greener in color and less active. 

Control. — Clean culture, burning of rubbish in the fall and 
early cutting of the clover and alfalfa as well as close pasturing 

* Agallia sanguinolenta Prov. Family Jassidos. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CLOVER AND ALFALFA 209 

of grass lands while the adults are numerous are the Bureau of 
Entomology recommendations for control.* 

When leafhoppers are unusually numerous and destructive 
they may be captured in enormous numbers by the use of a 
hopperdozer or hopperette, constructed along the same lines as 
those used for grasshoppers. 

Miscellaneous Insects of Clover and Alfalfa 

In addition to the insects already discussed there are many 
others which attack these crops, either occasionally or regularly. 
Among these should be mentioned the grasshoppers, a complete 
discussion of which will be found in Chapter VII, the pea-louse, 




Fig. 174. — The alfalfa caterpillar: full-grown larva. Enlarged about three 
diameters. (After Wildermuth, 1. c.) 

which is fully discussed in Chapter XV, and the bhster beetles, 
also discussed in Chapter XV and the one following and in Chap- 
ter VII. Besides these there are several species of caterpillars 
found in greater or less abundance in clover and alfalfa at all 
times. These include the following: 

The Alfalfa Caterpillar f which is the larva of one of our 
most common yellow butterflies always associated with clover 
fields and so familiar to all as to need no description. The larva 
is green in color and similar to the common cabbage worm, dif- 
fering in the possession of a light stripe on each side through 
which runs a bright red hne. The insects seem to hibernate in 
all stages and there are two or more broods. 

Damage to the crops is usually not severe in any one place 
but evenly distributed and aggregates more than would be sup- 

* See Farmers' Bulletin 737, U. S. Dept. Agr. 

t Eurymus eun/theme Boisd. Family Pieridae. See V. L. Wildermuth, 
U. S. Dept. Agr. Bulletin 124. 



210 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



posed. In some localities damage is severe and control measures 
must be employed. When this is necessary the following prac- 



'^^y^iy^km^j'^^^yi:' ' '^ "^K / /^' 





Fig. 175. — Map showing distribution of the alfalfa 
caterpillar. (After Wildermuth, 1. c.) 

tices are advisable: Cut the crop early and close to the ground; 
pasture closely where possible; disk badly infested fields and 




Fig. 176. — Map showing distribution of the green clover 
worm in the United States. After Hill.) 

then run over them a roller or a brush drag; keep cultural con- 
ditions in a high state of perfection at all times. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CLOVER AND ALFALFA 211 

The Green Clover-worm * is another caterpillar which is 
frequently abundant in fields of clover, aKalfa, soy beans and 
related crops. It is a green caterpillar with darker stripes, an 
inch or more in length and the larva of one of the common dull- 
colored moths of the cutworm type. It is best controlled by 
harvesting the crop when the worms are present in the greatest 
abundance but are not quite grown, whether the crop is quite 
ready to cut or not. In this way many are starved and others 
perish from exposure to the sun after the crop has been removed. 
Supplement this with the brush drag if the worms are especially 
numerous. 

The AKalfa Looper f is one of the serious occasional pests 
of alfalfa in the Northwest. 
It is abundant mainly in 
irrigated regions. Control 
measures recommended 
are similar to those for the 
green clover-worm and al- 
falfa caterpillar and are at 

times supplemented by the ^^'™°*" ^^ 

use of poisons. Fig. 177.— The green clover worm; adult or 

The Garden Webworm ™°^^- ^^^^^ enlarged. (After Hill). 

(See Chapter XIX) sometimes defohates alfalfa and related 
plants and leaves over the injured stalks the webs which serve 
to identify it. Control measures apphcable to it are ahnost 
exactly similar to those for the other caterpillars Usted. 

* Plathij'pena scabra Fabr. Family ' Noctuidae. See Farmers' Bulletin 
No. 982, U. S. Dept. Agr. 

t Autographa californica Speyer. Family Noctuidae. See J. R. Parker 
Jour. Econ. Ent., Vol. 8, No. 2, 1915. 




CHAPTER Xir 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO TOBACCO * 
The Tobacco Flea-beetle f 

The Tobacco Flea-beetle is one of the important pests of that 
plant throughout the Middle States, being particularly injurious 

to young plants. The beetles 
damage the leaves by eating 
small holes in the upper or un- 
der surfaces, or clear through 
them, so that when badly 
eaten the leaves look as if they 
had been peppered with shot. 
The little beetles which do 
this damage are hardly more 
than one-twentieth inch long 
light brown in color, with a 
dark band across the wing- 
covers. A few of them could 

Fig 178.— Tobacco flea-beetle (^pz^no; par- do but little damage, but they 
vula): a, adult beetle; b, larva lateral . . , 

view; c, head of larva; d, posterior leg soon mcrease m numbers, so 

of same; e, anal segment, dorsal view; that they SWarm over the 
/, pupa— a, 6, /, enlarged about fifteen . 

times; c, d, e, more enlarged. (After leaves and mjure them badly. 
Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) Similar injury is done to 

potato, egg-plant, and tomato, and the beetles also feed on horse- 
nettle, nightshade, and Jamestown weed. 

Life History — The eggs are laid in the soil and the larvae feed 
upon the roots of common weeds, such as the nightshade and 
Jamestown weed. The larva is dehcate, thread-like and white, 

* See L. O. Howard, Farmers' Bulletin 120, U. S. Dept. Agr., The Prin- 
cipal Insects Affecting the Tobacco Plant. A. C. Morgan, Circular 123, 
Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr.; Yearbook, U. S. Dept. Agr., 1910, 
pp. 281-296; and Z. P. Metcalf, N. C. Dept. of Agr. Bulletin, Oct., 1909. 

t Ejntnx parvula Fab. Family Chrysomelidae. 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO TOBACCO 



213 



except the yellowish head, and about one-eighth inch long. It 
pupates in the soil. When the beetles 
become very numerous the larvae some- 
times develop on the roots of tobacco, 
but rarely do serious damage. The 
life history has not been determined 
exactly, but the full life cycle seems 
to occupy about a month, so that 
there are probably several generations 
in a year. 

Control. — Inasmuch as the larvse 
develop on the roots of the weeds 
mentioned, it is evident that they 
should be kept down by thorough cul- 
tivation. Where the beetles appear, 
the plants should be sprayed or dusted 
with Paris green, or probably better, 
arsenate of lead, the same as for the 
horn-worm. Dipping the plants in 
arsenate of lead, 1 pound to 10 gal- 
lons of water, just as they are set, has 
been found to afford very satisfactory 
protection in Connecticut. 

The Tobacco Stalk-worm * 



Professor W. G. Johnson found this' 
species, also known as the Corn-root 
Web worm, to be a serious pest to grow- 
ing tobacco-plants in southern Mary- 
land, where it seems to have been a 
tobacco pest for a good many years, 
and it has also been noted in Delaware. 

The Injury.— The injury to tobacco Fig. 179.--T o b a c c o leaves 

. -1 , "i r, n T 1 damaged by Epitrix parvul. 

is described by Professor Johnson as (After Howard, U. S. Dept. 

follows: " The uninjured tobacco had -^sr-) 

a leaf spread of from ten to twelve inches. A few rods beyond, 

where the soil was not so gravelly and better, we found the larvse 

* Crambus caloginosellus Clem. Family Crambidce. See p. 161 and Bul- 
letin 20, n. s., Div. Ent., U. S. Dept. Agr., pp. 99-101, 1899. 




214 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

had literally destroyed the first and second plantings and were 
at work upon the third, damaging it severely, although the ground 
had been replanted before the last planting. Here and there was 
a young plant just beginning to wilt, and invariably we found the 
larva at work either in the stalk or at the base of the plant just 
below the surface of the ground. So far as I could ascertain, the 
attack is always at the surface or just below. In many instances 
the larvae had hollowed out the stalks from the base of the roots to 
the branches of the first leaves. Many plants were gnawed 
irregularly around the stalk below the surface, and some, in fact, 
were completely cut off at the surface, the insect always working 
from below. In the great majority of cases the larvae were found 
in a small mass of web near the plant, and sometimes within 
it. In one plant, less than six inches high, we found four 
larvae within the stalk, but as a rule only a single one was 
present." 

Professor Johnson concluded "(1) that it is most likely to 
occur over local areas in tobacco following timothy or grass; 
(2) that the character of the soil has little or nothing to do with 
its ravages; (3) that the attack upon corn is also a frequent 
occurrence in the same section; especially when following grass 
or timothy." 

Remedies. — He recommended "(1) that growers of tobacco 
avoid planting upon grass or timothy sod; (2) that where grass 
land is plowed down it would be well to put it in wheat, following 
with clover, before tobacco. If desirable, corn could follow 
the grass and the land could be seeded in crimson clover at the 
last working. This would serve a twofold object by revealing 
the exact location of larvifi in the area under cultivation by their 
attack upon corn, when they could be destroyed largely by 
frequent harrowing and rolling, and by affording a most excellent 
soil crop to turn down the following spring, which would be a 
decided advantage to the tobacco; that if it is found neces- 
sary to have tobacco following grass, it should be broken in 
the spring as early as possible, and frequently rolled and har- 
rowed, at the same tune delaying the setting of the plants as long 
as possible in order to destroy and starve the larvae within the 
ground." 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO TOBACCO 



215 



The Spined Tobacco-bug * 

Professor H. Garman has found a small bug, which he has 
termed the Spined Tobacco-bug, doing more or less injury to plants 
in Kentucky, and as this insect is widely distributed throughout the 
country, it probably does more or less damage elsewhere, though 
never a serious pest. Concerning its work, he says: "Occa- 
sional plants in tobacco-fields are at times observed to have become 
suddenly wilted, the leaves hanging limp, much as if the stalk had 
been severed. After a time they recover again, and, beyond a 
temporary check on their growth, appear to have suffered but 
little injury. If such plants are searched carefully while still 
wilted, a flat, brown bug with each side of the body produced into 
an angle, or sharp spine, will be found upon the stalk along the 
base of the leaves. It is very shy and keeps out of sight, hence any 




Fig. 180. — The spined tobacco-bug {Euschistus variolarius), nymph at left; 
adult at right — enlarged. (After Howard, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

brisk movement on the injured plants is likely to cause it to drop to 
the ground and conceal itself." These insects are true bugs, suck- 
ing their food through a beak, which is bent under the body 
between the legs when not in use. They are about half an inch 
long, of a drab color above and greenish or yellowish below. 
Usually only one bug is found on a plant, so that the best way to 
prevent the injury is to pick them from the plants, and keep 
down such weeds as thistles and mulleins, upon which such in- 
sects feed, in the adjoining fields. 



* Eutschistus punctipes Say (variolarius Pal. Beauv. 
See Bulletin No. 66, Ky. Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 33. 



Family Pentatomidoe. 



216 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



The Homworms or Tobacco-worms * 

Of all the insects feeding upon tobacco, the Hornworms are 
the most widely injurious and therefore best known. The cater- 
pillars of two species of moths are commonly included under this 
popular name, both species occurring throughout the tobacco- 
growing States, the northern tobacco-worm being more common 
in the North and the southern tobacco-worm more common in the 




Fig. 181. — Northern tobacco-worm, or "hornworm" (Phlegethontius quinque- 
maculnta): a, adult moth; h, full-grown larva: c. pupa — natural size. 
(After Howard, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

South. The differences in the adult moths may be readily appre- 

caited from Figs. 181 and 182, the southern form being darker and 

with brighter orange spots on the abdomen, and the white lines on 

the hind-wings being less distinct. The larvse of both species 

commonly attack tomato vines and are commonly called tomato 

worms where tobacco is not grown. 

* Phlegethontius quinquemaculata Haworth (Northern), and P. sexta 
Johanssen (Southern). Family Sphingidae. 

216 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO TOBACCO 



217 



Life History. — The pupae pass the winter several inches below 
the surface of the soi) and from them the moths emerge in May and 
June, according to the latitude and season. The females deposit 
their eggs singly, upon the lower surfaces of the leaves, from which 
the little caterpillars hatch in from four to eight days. The char- 
acteristic work of the larvae is too well known to every tobacco 
grower to necessitate description. The caterpillars become full 
grown in about three weeks, during which time thev moult some 




FiQ. 182. — Southern tobacco- worm {Phlegethontius sexta): a, adult moth; 
b, full-grown larva; c, pupa — natural size. (After Howard, U. S. Dept. 
Agr.) 

five times. The full grown larvse are three to four inches long, of 
a dark green color with white stripes on the side of the body, those 
of the northern species having a V-shape, while those of the south- 
ern species being simple oblique hands. At the tip of the abdomen 
is a stout horn, from which is derived the name of hornworm, 
which in the northern species is black and in the southern is red. 
The pupae are formed in the soil, are dark brown, about two inches 
long, and have a peculiar handle-like process, the sheath of the 



218 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

proboscis, which somewhat resembles a horn and which may 
account for the name of " hornblowers," commonly given them in 
Marylar/d and Virginia. The pupal stage lasts about three weeks, 
when the adults emerge, the whole life cycle requiring from six to 
eight weeks. Usually two generations occur in a season through- 
out most of the tobacco belt, but in the North there seems to be 
but one generation, and in the Gulf States there may be three 
generations. Occasionally the worms are overlooked in cutting 
the tobacco and are carried into the barn, where they may do 
considerable injury even after the tobacco is partially dry. 

Control. — The most common method of control is hand-pick- 
ing, usually termed "worming." In seasons when the worms are 
not overabundant this may be the most practical method of con- 
trol, but it is both tiresome and expensive, and the planter has no 
means of predicting whether the worms will be more or less abun- 
dant. Large flocks of turkeys driven through the fields will aid 
most efficiently in this work. 

In many sections the worms are now controlled by spraying 
or dusting with Paris green or arsenate of lead. More or less popu- 
lar prejudice against the use of arsenicals has existed, as it was 
thought the tobacco might be poisonous to the consumer. Careful 
chemical examinations have shown, however, that the amount 
left on the foliage after three sprayings would be far too small to 
have any deleterious effect. The same prejudice formerly existed 
against the use of arsenicals on potatoes, cabbage and other crops 
but experience has shown it to be unwarranted. A real objection 
to the use of Paris green is that it sometimes slightly burns the 
foUage, so that arsenate of lead will doubtless be found preferable. 

Morgan* recommends dusting rather than spraying and con- 
demns the use of Paris green. His summary of recommendations 
is as follows : 

"Paris green, although an effective insecticide, frequently 
burns tobacco very severely and may reduce the value of the crop 
by as much as 50 per cent in exceptional cases. 

Arsenate of lead never seriously injures tobacco even under 
the most unfavorable conditions. 

A dosage of Paris green large enough to be effective against horn- 
worms can not be applied without grave danger of burning tobacco. 

* Morgan, A. C. Farmer's Bulletin 867, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO TOBACCO 



219 



Paris green, which is applied in dust form without a carrier, 
is used at the rate of from 1 to 2 pounds per acre. 




Fig. 183. Hibernation of southern tobacco-worm ;c, pupa in hibernating cell in 
soil, at the depth of which pupation usually takes place in the stiff er soils; 
a, cross-section of pupal cell viewed from below; b, pupal cell showing 
entrance hole of larva — two- third natural size; (After A. C. Morgan, 
U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

Arsenate of lead is safe and effective during rainy weather, 
whereas Paris green is dangerousi and ineffective. 



220 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 




It is recommended that arsenate of lead be used against the 

tobacco horn worms and that it be appHed as a dust or powder. 
The dosage of arsenate of lead in powdered form varies from 

3^ pounds to 5 pounds per acre. If applied as a spray, use from 

3 to 4 pounds in 100 gallons of water. 

To apply arsenate of lead in powdered form, without a carrier, 

use a dust gun having 
a fan diameter of at 
least 10 in<;hes and a 
special device for pre- 
venting clogging of the 
delivery pipe. If a gun 
with such a device is 
not used, it will be 
necessary to mix the 
arsenate of lead thor- 
oughlywith equal 
parts of dry wood 
ashes. 

Apply arsenate of 

lead when there is no breeze and when dew is on the plants. 

Use only such brands of arsenate of lead as are guaranteed to 

contain at least 30 per cent of arsenic oxid, of which not more than 

1 per cent is free, or water-soluble.'' 

Natural Enemies. — Very frequently worms are found covered 

with what seem to be small, white eggs. These are not eggs, how- 
ever, but are the small silken cocoons 

of a little wasp-like parasite {Apan- 

teles congregatus) whose larvse feed I 

internally upon the juices of the 

worm and thus ultimately kill it 

before it transforms to a pupa. Such 

parasitized worms should never be Yig. 185.— Southern tobacco-worm 

destroyed, as the parasites are of with cocoons of parasite. 
1 xi 4.U J 4.U (^^^r Garman.) 

more value than the damage the 

worm might do. Very frequently the caterpillars are attacked by 
a bacterial disease which causes them to turn dark and become 
shrunken and flaccid. 



Fig. 184. — Southern tobacco-worm killed by 
fungus. (After Garman.) 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO TOBACCO 



221 




h 

Fig. 186. — The true budworm (Chloridea vire- 
scens): a, adult moth; b, full-grown larva, 
from side; c, same, from above; d, seed-pod 
bored into by larva; e, pupa — natural size. 
(After Howard, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



The Budworms * 

Two caterpillars of the same genus commonly attack the bud 
of tobacco and have been distinguished by Dr. L. O. Howard as 
the true budworm and 
false budworm, the latter 
being the same as the 
well-known cotton boll- 
worm or corn ear- worm. f 

"The true budworm 
(Chloridea viresceJis) ' oc- 
curs in the more south- 
ern portions of the to- 
bacco-growing regions," 
says Dr. Ho ward, | " but 
has not been noted in to- 
bacco-fields north of 
Maryland. The adult insect is a small greenish moth, well illus- 
trated in Fig. 186. The larva or caterpillar of this moth, also illus- 
trated, is nearly always found in the bud of the tobacco-plant about 
the time the plant is ready to top. In some seasons they occur in 
large numbers and damage the tobacco considerably. In the 
early part of the season, as a general thing, but few of them are 
found, and in ordinary seasons they are not especially noticed 
during the early" worming" of the tobacco. In August they 
begin to be more abundant, and generally leave the plant about 
the end of the month, entering the ground, transforming to pupae 
and issuing as moths toward the end of September. These dates 
are for Virginia, but hold reasonably well as far south as Mississippi. 
The greatest damage done by this insect is by the August brood, 
when it enters the roUed-up leaves or bud of the plant. In 
September and October the next generation of caterpillars is found 
boring into the seedpod and occasionally into the flower-stem . . . 
The caterpillars of the last fall generation enter the ground and hib- 
ernate as pupse. The insect has several other food-plants aside 
from cotton, but its most abundant food in the South is the weed 

* Chloridea mrescens Fab., and C. obsoleta Fab. Family Noctuidce. 
t See corn ear-worms for full description and illustrations. 
t Farmers' Bulletin 120, U. S. Dept. Agr. The principal Insects Affect- 
ing the Tobacco Plant. 



222 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



known as ground cherry (Physalis viscosa).'' The Hfe history 
of this species is very similar, therefore, to the false budworm or 
bollworm. 

The corn ear-worm (which see) is usually found attacking 
tobacco in Virginia and Kentucky only late in the season after 
corn has commenced to harden. It then bores into the buds, seed- 
pods, and flower-stalks, in the same manner as the last species. In 

Florida, however, Pro- 
fessor A. L. Quaintance 
states that its worst in- 
jury is done early in the 
season before corn or cot- 
ton are available, the 
eggs being laid in the bud 
and the young larvae feed- 
ing on the unfolded 
leaves, doing very serious 
injury. In Florida the 
corn ear-worm or false 
budworm is more com- 
mon than the former 
species. 

Control. — P o i s o n e d 
corn-m e a 1 has been 
found to be a satisfactory 
remedy for both species 
when they bore into the 
bud. Mix a teaspoonful 

Fig. 187.-Larva of false budworm (Chloridea °^ arsenate of lead into a 
obsoleta), showing work on seed capsules of quart of finely ground 
tobacco plant. (After Quaintance.) cornmeal and sprinkle 

into the buds from a can perforated like a pepper can. This 
should be applied frequently, especially after heavy rains. 
Large buds should be opened and a pinch of the poison placed 
within. When spraying or dusting with an arsenical is prac- 
ticed against the hornworms it will aid in the control of the bud- 
worms, and may be advisable for them alone where injury is 
serious. When the injury by the false budworm occurs only 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO TOBACCO 



223 



late in the season, it would seem that the moths might be attracted 
to a trap crop of late corn in the same manner as cotton is pro- 
tected from it. 

The Tobacco Leaf -miner * 

The larva of a small moth has become quite injurious in part, 
of North Carolina and Florida by mining the inside of the leafs 
and is thus known as the Tobacco Leaf -miner. This insect occurs 
in other parts of the country, but has become injurious only in the 
states named and in recent years. The injury is done by the 
larvae eating out irregular patches of the tissue in the leaves, leav- 
ing only the upper 



and lower surfaces, 
the lower leaves 
being infested the 
worst. The leaves 
are rendered unfit 
for wrappers, split- 
ting and tearing very 
easily on account of 
these blotches. A 
larva does not con- 
fine its work to one 
place, but makes 
several mines, and a 
single larva may thus destroy the value of a leaf for wrapping pur- 
poses. This migratory habit is of considerable importance, as 
in leaving the old and in making new mines the larvae must 
necessarily eat a certain amount of the surface of the leaf, and 
can thus be killed by an arsenical spray. The life liistory of tht? 
insect is not completely known, but as only about twenty days 
are required for all its transformations, several broods probably 
occur during a season. The original food-plant of this pest has 
been found to be the common horse or bull-nettle (Solanum 
carolinense), which fact further emphasizes the caution already 
given, to keep all weeds carefully cut down around the tobacco- 
field, especially those nearly related to tobacco botanically. Many 
planters destroy the larvae by simply crushing them with the hand, 
and this can be done quite rapidly, and if done before the mines 
become numerous should be sufficient to check the injury. 
* PhthorimoBa operculella Zell. Family Tineidoe. 




Fig. 188. — Tobacco leaf-rriner or split-worm: adult 
moth above; larva below at right; pupa below at 
left, with side view of enlarged anal segment — 
all enlarged (After Howard, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



224 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Where spraying or dusting is practised against the hornworm 
it should be sufficient to destroy most of the miners, as, if 
the leaf is thoroughly coated with poison, they would get a fatal 
dose in starting a new mine. 

The Cigarette-beetle * 

The most serious pest of dried tobacco is the httle brown 
Cigarette-beetle, which also attacks various drugs and stored 
food products. The beetle is but one- 
sixteenth inch long, of a brownish color, and 
with the pro-thorax bent down so that the 
head is obscured as if under a hood. 

''Working as it does in all kinds of cured 
tobacco and living in this substance during 
all the stages of its existence," says Dr. 
L. 0. Howard, "it damages cigarettes and 
cigars principally by boring out of them, 
making round holes in the wrappers so that 
they will not draw. Leaf tobacco is injured 
for wrapping purposes by being punctured 
with holes made both by the larvae and 
beetles, and fillers and finecut are injured 
by the reduction of their substance by the 
actual amount consmned by the larvae." 
" The cigarette-beetle is practically cosmo- 
politan, and probably occurs in most tobacco 
factories in the Southern States, as well as 
in most wholesale drug stores. In the far 
South this insect multiplies rapidly through- 
out the greater part of the year, and its 
development is practically continuous in 
artificially warmed factories farther north." 
Life History. — In heated factories the in- 
sect may be found in all stages throughout 
the year. Otherwise it seems to pass the 
winter months in the larval state. The 
Fig. 189.— Work of larva is slightly larger than the beetle and 
(itrH™wLt"u!s: covered with hair ^ shown in Fig. 190. 
Dept, Agr.) When full grown it spins a compact silky 

* Lasioderma serricorne Fab. Family Ptinidw. 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO TOBACCO 



225 



cocoon covered with bits of whatever it is breeding in and in it 
transforms to the pupa. In a, warm room the entire life cycle has 
been passed in forty-seven days, and it seems probable that in 
the District of Columbia, there are two generations a year. The 
life is undoubtedly intimately related to the moisture and temp- 
erature conditions under which it lives. 

Control. — When a factory or storehouse has become badly 
infested a thorough cleaning is the first step in the control of 
the pest, as tobacco fragments and dust are usually present every- 

e 




Fig. 190. — The cigarette beetle: a, larva; b, pupa; c, adult; d, side viw of 
adult; e, antenna — all greatly enlarged; e, still more enlarged. (After 
Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

where and ideal conditions for the multiplication of the pest are 
afforded. 

Infested tobacco should be opened up, if packed tightly, 
placed in tight boxes or in a tight room and exposed to the fumes 
of carbon bisulfide, using it the same as for grain insects. 

The quantity used will depend upon the tightness of the 
enclosure, the way in which the tobacco is packed, and the tem- 
perature. One pound to every 200 cubic feet will usually be ample. 
In factories where the beetle is abundant the tobacco should be 
steamed before use, which will kill all stages of the insect. Loose 
tobacco, cigars, and cigarettes, should not be left exposed to the 
beetles, but should be covered up or placed in tight receptacles 
to prevent their access. Badly infested factories and storehouses 
may be fumigated with hydrocyanic acid gas. Heating would 
be effective where practical. 

Several other insects are more or less serious pests of tobacco 

in certain parts of the country or under local conditions. The 

Tobacco Thrips* has caused considerable loss to growers of 

wrapper tobacco in Florida where it is grown under shade. 

* Euthrips nicotanice Hinds. Order Thysanoptera. See W. A. Hooker, 
Bulletin 65, and Circular 68, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr. 



CHAPTER XIII 
INSECTS INJURIOUS TO COTTON * 

Plant-lice f 

With the formation of the first true leaves of cotton, winged 
aphids or plant-lice appear in large numbers on the under side 
and on the terminals, the "buds "of the plants often being black 
with them. Almost all of them are the common greenish Melon- 
aphist (see page 344), which infests melons later in the season. 
It is evident, therefore, that the practice of planting cotton 
between rows of melons is undesirable. The aphids migrate 
to the cotton while it is young from various common weeds upon 
which they have passed the winter. 

Another species, known as the Bur-clover Aphis § occurs on 
cotton at about the same time and is not readily distinguishable 
from the previous species, but is darker and has a shining reddish 
or brownish-black color. 

In cold weather these plant-lice often cause considerable 
injury to the young plants, and greatly retard their development, 
since they multiply very rapidly and feed mostly on the growing 
terminals. If there be a few warm days, however, hordes of 
small Hymenopterous parasites appear and in a few days often 
completely rid the plants of the pest. 

Control. — Although these aphids may be destroyed by spray- 
ing with kerosene emulsion, whale-oil soap, or tobacco water, 
as a rule the use of these on any considerable scale will hardly be 
profitable. Keeping the fields clear of weeds by fall and winter 
plowing will undoubtedly have a beneficial effect in reducing 

* See Hunter and Hinds, The Mexican Cotton Boll Weevil, Bulletin 51, 
Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr.; Quaintance and Brues, The Cotton 
Bollworm, Bulletin 50, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr.; Sanderson, 
Miscellaneous Cotton Insects of Texas, Bulletin 57, Bureau of Entomology, 
Farmers' Bulletin 223, U. S. Dept. Agr. 

t Family Aphididce. 

t Aphis gossypii Glov. 

§ Aphis medicaginis Koch. 

226 




Fig. 191. — The cotton worm {Alabama argillacea): young and full-grown 
larvae or worms, pupa, cocoons in folded leaves, and moths, at rest, and 
with wings expanded — three-fourths natural size. (After Comstock.) 

227 



228 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

the numbers of aphids and in most cases will be the only treat- 
ment necessary. 

The corn root-aphis is also recognized as a pest of cotton, 
especially the young plants. When it appears it may be 
controlled to some extent by frequent shallow cultivation of the 
young plants until they are well established. Infestation may be 
avoided by a system of rotation where cotton does not follow 
either cotton or corn in infested fields.* 



The Cotton Worm f 

Until the advent of the boll weevil, the cotton worm was 
much the most serious insect pest of cotton. Since then, however, 




Fig. 192. — Pimpla conquisitor, one of the principal parasites of the cotton- 
caterpillar: a, larvse enlarged; b, head of same still more enlarged; c, pupa; 
d, adult female enlarged; e, f, end of abdomen of adult male, still more 
enlarged. (From Fourth Rept. U. S. Entom. Comm.) i 

its importance has been rather overshadowed in the mind of the 

planter by the onslaught of the invading Mexican pest and where 

the boll weevil is abundant the stripping of the late foliage by 

the cotton worm really aids in the control of the weevil, as will 

be explained later. 

Life History. — During the winter months the adult moth 

hibernates in the most southern portion of the cotton-belt, in the 

rank wire-grass occurring in the more thickly timbered regions. 

* See W. A. Thomas, S. C. Expt. Sta. Bulletin 175. 

^Alabama argillacea Hubn. Family Noctuidw. See W. E. Hinds, Bul- 
letin 164, Alabama Agr. Expt. Station. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO COTTON 



229 



Only a few of these survive, but they are very capable ancestors. In 
early March they lay eggs upon volunteer cotton when it is only 
an inch or two high. The eggs are laid singly, usually upon the 
under surface of the leaves near the top of the plant, and about 
500 are laid by each female. The egg is of a flattened convex 
shape, bluish-green in color, and with prominent ridges converging 
to the apex. In midsummer the eggs hatch in three or four days, 
but in spring and autumn a much longer time is required. The 
young larvae are a pale yellow color, but soon assume a greenish 
tinge, and are marked with dark spots which become more dis- 
tinct after the first moult, when they become marked like the full- 
grown caterpillars, being 
more or less striped with 
black. During the early 
season the greenish cater- 
pillars predominate, but 
later the black stripes 
become heavier and the 
darker forms prevail. 
The appetites of these 
caterpillars are only too 
well known to the cotton- 
grower. At first they are 
content with eating only 
the under surfaces of the 
leaves, occasionally pierc- Fig. 193. — Cotton-worm egg parasite (Pentar- 
in(T ihrnuffh Th^n ih^ ^^^'^"' ^i^^^^em); a, adult female, greatly 

mg tnrough. ihen the enlarged; 6, ovipositor; c, female antenna; 

leaves commence to look d, male antenna. (From Fourth Rept. U. S. 

ragged, and when they Entom. Comm.) 

become scarce the tender twigs and buds are attacked. When 
they are excessively abundant the larvae develop cannibalistic 
tendencies, like the boll worms, and often feed upon the weaker 
caterpillars. The larvae become full grown in from one to three 
weeks, during which time they moult some five times. 

When mature the caterpillar crawls into a folded leaf, which is 
often so eaten away that the pupa hangs exposed, and there 
spins around it a thin silken cocoon and transforms to the pupa, 
in which state the insect remains dormant for from one to four 
weeks, when it emerges as an adult moth. 




230 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

The moth is a dull olive-gray color with a wing expanse of 
about 1^ inches, which sometimes have a purplish lustre, and which 
are marked with darker lines as shown in Fig. 191. Like most of 
the owlet moths it flies only after sunset, but unlike them, it is 
not confined to the nectar of flowers for food, as its mouth is 
peculiarly adapted to piercing the skin of ripe fruit and feeding 
upon its juices. Injury by the cotton worm moth to ripened 
peaches is frequently noticed in the peach orchards of West 
Virginia and regions farther north. The moths are strong fliers, 
those of the later broods being frequently found as far north as 
Canada. 

The first two generations develop rapidly and in the extreme 
South the moths emerge by early April and are carried north- 
ward by the prevailing winds. Eggs deposited by them give 
rise to a brood of moths which in turn fly farther northward, 
and thus the worms are gradually found throughout the whole 
cotton belt, though with a considerable confusion between the 
various generations. At least seven generations occur on 
the Gulf Coast, and three at the northern limit of the species. 
Considering the number of eggs laid by each female and 
this number of generations, it may be readily perceived how 
such immense numbers of the caterpillars may arise by the latter 
part of the season, in a region where practically none remain 
over winter. If none was killed, the progeny of a single moth 
after four generations would amount to over 300,000,000,000 
individuals, or if placed end to end, the third generation would 
be enough to encircle the earth at the equator over four times. 

Enemies. — It is thus very fortunate that there are many 
deadly enemies of the cotton worms, which commence their war- 
fare upon them with their first appearance in spring and continue 
it with increasing ardor throughout the season. One of the most 
effective of these is a minute little insect, Trichogramma pretiosa, 
which develops within the eggs. Mr. H. G. Hubbard once 
observed that in Florida from 75 to 90 per cent of the fourth 
brood of eggs were destroyed by this parasite, while only three 
or four eggs in a hundred escaped in the sixth brood. Another 
of the most useful parasites, Pimpla conquisitor, was noticed as 
early as 1847 to destroy nearly aU of the pupae of the last brood. 
The eggs of the Pimpla are laid upon the caterpillar, and the 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO COTTON 231 

maggots enter the worm and feed upon its juices. It changes 
to a pupa as usual, but the pupa soon dies, and large numbers 
are thus killed. Several similar parasites prey upon the cotton 
worm, and it is to be regretted that we know of no way of encourag- 
ing their valuable work. The common insectivorous birds eat 
large numbers of the worms, especially when they are scarce 
in early spring, and they should be protected by enacting and 
.enforcing most stringent laws against their wanton destruction. 

Control. — The most commonly used and effective remedy is 
to dust the plants with arsenate of lead. Dusting machines drawn 
by a team which will cover four rows at once are in common use. 
The dust may be applied with any of the powder guns, but it is 
most commonly appHed to two rows at once by means of bags 
fastened at the ends of a pole and carried by a man on horseback, 
who can thus dust 15 to 20 acres per day. These sacks are about 
10 inches long by 4 inches in diameter, open the whole length 
on one side and firmly sewed at the ends. Eight-ounce Osnaburg 
is the best cloth for the purpose. A strip of oak or strong wood 
about 1/^x2 inches, and 5 feet long, has a 1-inch hole bored 
through it 5 inches from each end, and to this the sack is tacked, 
fastening one of the edges of the opening to each of the narrow 
sides of the pole. The sacks are filled through the holes in the pole. 
When freshly filled a slight jarring will shake out a sufficient 
amount of the poison, but when nearly empty the pole should 
be frequently and sharply struck with a short stick or spaces 
will be missed. The poison has been found most effective with- 
out the admixture of flour, but if it is used, lighter cloth should 
be used for the sacks. 

Besides the general use of poisons there have been several 
important factors which have aided in the control of the cotton 
worm, so that it is by no means as much of an enemy of the cotton 
crop as formerly. Among the most important of these, both 
from an entomological and general agricultural standpoint, is 
the diversification and rotation of crops, now coming to be more 
and more practiced by the progressive agriculturists of the South, 
This alone largely prevents the rapid spread of the pest. Since 
the seed has become such a valuable product of cotton, smaller 
varieties with many seeds and a short fibre are being grown, 
in contrast to the rank-growing, long-fibre sorts formerly pre- 



232 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

ferred. Thus the rows are more open, the work of the worms 
is more readily detected and the poison more easily applied. 

Other Caterpillars Injuring the FoUage 

Several of our common caterpillars which ordinarily feed upon 
various weeds frequently attack cotton foliage in restricted local- 
ities and do more or less serious damage. They may be readily 
controlled by keeping down the weeds upon which they normally 
feed and multiply and by dusting the foliage as for the cotton 
worm as soon as they are noticed upon the cotton in any numbers. 

Among the more common of these leaf-eating caterpillars 
is the Grarden Web worm* (see page 363), which may be recognized 
by the fine silken web which it spins over the young plants. 
Another is the White-lined Sphinx Caterpillar,! a yellowish- 
green caterpillar with black eye-spots and faint stripes, varying 
to blackish with yellow spots, and distinguishable from most 
other cotton caterpillars by the horn, characteristic of sphingid 
caterpillars, at the tip of the abdomen. The Salt-marsh Cater- 
pillarf which is one of our best-known " woolly bear" caterpil- 
lars, covered with black and red hairs, has frequently stripped 
cotton of foliage in Texas, as does the Fall Army Worm (see page 
114), when it becomes locally overabundant. Many other species 
might be mentioned which do more or less local injury. 

The Cotton Square-borer § 

Just as the cotton squares commence to form they are often 

bored into by a small green caterpillar which many planters 

consider a stage of the bollworm and which others have called 

the "sharpshooter." This injury is often quite serious on a 

small area, as we have seen 10 per cent of the stalks entirely 

denuded of squares in small fields in Texas where this insect was 

abundant. The little caterpillars hollow out the squares in the 

same manner as does the bollworm, often destroying all of those 

on a plant knee-high and even boring into the tender stalk. The 

caterpillars are bright green, oval, decidedly flattened, covered 

with short hairs which give them a velvety appearance, and with 

* Loxostege similalis Guen. Family Pijralidm. 
t Deilephila lineata Fab. Family Sphingidoe. 
X Estigmene acroea Drury. Family Arctiidce. 
§ Uranotes melinus Hbn. Family Lyccenidce, 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO COTTON 



233 




Fig. 194. — The cotton square-borer {Uranotes 
melinus Hbn.): a, adult; 6, underwing of 
same; c, larva;d, pupa — naturalsize. (After 
Howard, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



the head retracted under the front of the body, thus being quite 
unhke any stage of the bo llworm. They are the larvse of a dainty 
httle butterfly (Fig. 194) , 
of a bluish-black color, 
with dark reddish lustre, 
and with bright red spots 
on the posterior border 
of the hind wings, com- 
mon around cotton-fields. 
The small yellowish, 
transparent eggs are laid 
on the leaves and stems 
of cotton, cow-peas, goat- 
weed, and various weeds, 
and the larvse have also 
been found on hops, beans and cow-peas, seeming to prefer the 
latter to cotton. The eggs hatch in from two to five days, the 
larvae become grown in a little over two weeks, and the pupal 

stage averages about 
ten days, so that the 
whole life cycle re- 
quires about a month 
in Central Texas, 
where there are three 
or four generations in 
a season. 

Fortunately for the 
planter the large ma- 
jority of the caterpil- 
lars are parasitized, 
over 90 per cent of 
the June generation 
having been thus 
destroyed. 

Usually, therefore, 
it is hardly worth while 
to attempt to combat 
this insect, as it is not 




Fig. 195. — The glassy-winged sharpshooter {Ho- 
malodisa triquetra Fab.): adult at left, last 
stage of nymph at right, young nymph below 
— all enlarged. (Author's illustration, U. S. 
Dept. Agr.) 



234 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



often seriously injurious year after year. Should remedial treat- 
ment be necessary, thorough dusting with Paris green or arsenate 
of lead would probably destroy most of them, as the young cater- 
pillars, like the bollworms, feed to some extent upon the foliage 
before entering the squares. 

" Sharpshooters " or Leafhoppers * 

In late summer reports are frequent that cotton is being 
injured by "sharpshooters," especially on low land. These insects 
are reported to puncture the squares and bolls, causing them to 






Fig. 196. — Three cotton leafhoppers commonly called sharpshooters: 
a, Aulacizes irrorata; b, Oncometopia undata; c, Oncometopia lateralis — 
much enlarged. (Author's illustration, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

drop prematurely, a small black speck showing the spot where 
punctured. The insect which has been most commonly credited 
with this work is the Glassy- winged Sharpshooter, f but with it are 
usually associated several near relatives with similar habits.t Few 
planters are able to identify the cause of the supposed injury, but 
many know these insects as "dodgers," from their habit of quickly 
dodging to the opposite side of the stem when disturbed. Ex- 
tensive observations and repeated experiments during two seasons 

* Family Jassidce. t Homalodisca triquetra Fab. 

X Oncometopia undata Fab., O. lateralis Fab., and Aulacizes irrorata Fab. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO COTTON 



235 



failed to show the slightest evidence that these insects are ever in- 
jurious to cotton, though they are common upon it, the supposed 
injury being undoubtedly due to the physiological condition of the 
plant which causes a shedding of the fruit at the season when 
the supposed injury occurs. 

The adult insects hibernate in rubbish on the ground near the 
food-plants and appear in early spring on the elm, hackberry, red- 
bud, Cottonwood, willow, and the tender shoots of other trees, 
especially on bottom-land near streams. Here they suck the 
juices of the tender leaves and deposit their eggs in them. The 
eggs are laid in rows of ten to fifteen, side by side, just under the 




Fig. 197. — The cotton leaf-bug {Calocoris rapidus) : a, adult ; b, c, d, stages in 
growth of nymph; and cotton boll, showing spots injured by cotton leaf- 
bug all enlarged. (Author's illustration, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

surface of the leaf, forming a blister-like mark. They hatch in a 
few days and the young bugs, or nymphs, are grayish or yellowish 
in color and resemble the adults except in the lack of wings. Two 
or three generations occur annually in Texas, and the insects are 
not common on cotton until midsummer. They are exceedingly 
fond of banana trees, sorghum and sunflowers, sometimes doing 
considerable injury to the latter, but there is no evidence for con- 
sidering them pests of cotton. 

The Cotton Leaf-bug * 

This insect was the cause of considerable damage in Northern 
Texas in the latter part of the season of 1904, and had been pre- 

* Calocoris rapidus Say. Family Capsidce. 



236 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



viously reported as a pest of cotton, though its injury had never 
been general. It punctures the squares and bolls, either causing 
them to drop or making the bolls shrivel or decay when punctured. 
The feeding punctures in the bolls are indicated by small black 
spots, resembling diseased places, which gradually become larger 
and sunken, evidently due to some poisonous substance intro- 
duced by the beak of the insect as it sucks the juices of the boll. 
The bugs may be readily recognized from Fig. 197, and by the 
bright red spots just beyond the middle of the wing. The young 
are light green marked with red. Several generations of the insect 
occur annually, but its life history and habits are still unknown, 
and no means of combating it have been devised. 

Other Plant-bugs * 

Several other species of plant-bugs do considerable injury 
by sucking the bolls and causing them to shrink or decay. 

^mi If ^ 




Fig. 198. — The green soldier-bug (Nezara hilaris): a, adult; h, beak; c, eggs. 
d, end of egg more enlarged; e, young nymph; /, last stage of nymph. 
(After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

Among these are the so-called "pumpkin-bugs" or "stink-bugs," 
of which a large green species f is the most commonly injurious, 
while the blackish, leaf -footed plant-bugs, J which are more abun- 
dant on cucurbs, do similar injury. 

* See A. W. Morrill, Plant-bugs Injurious to Cotton Bolls. Bulletin 86, 
Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr. 

t Nezura hilaris Say. Family Pentatomidoe. 
X Leptoglossus oppositus Say, Family Coreidce. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO COTTON 



237 



" Cotton-stainer " * 

The cotton-stainer or red-bug is stated by Hunter to be the 
most important cotton pest in Florida. It occurs in small num- 
bers in Georgia, South Carolina and Alabama, but does practically 
no injury there. The principal damage is due to the bugs punctur- 
ing the bolls in feeding and staining the lint a brownish color. 
This stain seems to arise from the injured seed, at least it is most 
noticeable around the seed. The cocklebur seems to be the 
most important of the native food-plants, though the bugs feed 
on the night-shade and Hibiscus and sometimes attack oranges. 




Fig. 199. — The red bug, or cotton-stainer (Dysdercus suturellus) enlarged. 
a, nymph; b, adult. (From "Insect Life.") 

Prevention of the growth of these weeds is therefore of importance. 

As the bugs usually assemble in colonies, their red color may be 

easily observed and they may be jarred from the foliage into 

buckets containing water covered with a film of kerosene. In 

the fall and winter these insects assemble in numbers on piles 

of cotton seed, which may thus be used as traps and the bugs 

killed with kerosene or hot water. 

* Dysdercus suturellus H. Schf. Family Pyrrhocoridce. See W. D. Hunter, 
Circular 149, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Department of Agriculture. 



238 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



The Cotton Bollworm * 

One of the most destructive and widespread pests of cotton is 
the bollworm, the same insect as the earworm of corn already- 
described, which should be consulted for the life history 
and description. Throughout the cotton belt the moths of the 
third generation appear about August 1st. At that time the ears 

of corn have become too 
hard to furnish suitable 
food for the larvae and 
the moths therefore lay 
their eggs on the cot- 
ton leaves, though if 
any late corn is in silk 
it is decidedly preferred. 
Thus during the month 
of August the cotton is 
often seriously injured 
by the caterpillars bor- 
ing into the bolls, this 
injury being most seri- 
ous in recent years west 
of the Mississippi and 
particularly in north 
Texas and Louisiana. 
The total damage to cot- 
ton is estimated at upward of $40,000,000 per annum. Though 
more or less damage is done by the fourth generation of worms, 
injury is rarely serious, as the numbers are greatly reduced 
by parasites and unfavorable weather conditions. 

About two-thirds of the eggs on corn are parasitized by a 
tiny little insect hardly visible to the naked eye,t which be- 
comes so abundant late in the season as effectively to check 
the increase of the pest. 

Wasps are effective enemies of the bollworms, provisioning 
their nests with them. Several species of tachina-fiies parasitize 

* Chloridea obsoleta Fab. Family Noctuidce. See Farmers' Bulletin 
No. 290, U. S. Dept. Agr., by F. C. Bishop and C. R. Jones and Bulletin 50, 
Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr., by A. L. Quaintance and C. T. 
Brues. 

t Trichograinina pretiosa Riley. 




Fig. 200. — Bollworm at work on cotton bolls, 
boring into grown boll — slightly reduced. 
(After Quaintance and Brues, U.S. Dept. Agr.) 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO COTTON 



239 



the caterpillars, while not a few are killed by a bacterial disease. 
One of the most important natural factors in reducing their num- 
bers, however, is their own tendency to cannibalism, the larger 
caterpillars attacking and destroying the weaker with a consequent 
marked reduction in numbers. 

Control. — As in protecting corn from this pest, the most effect- 
ive means is the plowing of the land containing the pupae in winter 
or late fall. 

Early planting of early fruiting varieties of cotton, with a 
liberal use of fertilizers, and frequent cultivation, so as to hasten 
the maturity of the crop, will result in 
a good crop being made before the 
worst injury by the boll worm occurs. 
These cultural measures ensure the best 
crops even where there are no insects 
to be avoided, and as an early crop 
is less injured by almost all cotton 
insects, the planter should adjust his methods to secure earliness. 

As the eggs are laid mostly on the cotton leaves and the little 





Fig. 201. — Egg of bollworm; 
side and top views. Highly 
magnified (From Quaintance 
andBrues, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 




Fig. 202. — Bollworms showing variation in color, upper larva green, middle 
rose, and lower, dark brown — twice natural size. (After Quaintance and 
Brues, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

caterpillars nibble the surface before boring into the bolls, the 
poisoning of the foliage when the eggs are hatching will result in 
a very material reduction of the subsequent injury. Paris green 



240 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



has been most generally used, but recently powdered arsenate of 
lead has been found superior to it. Arsenate of lead is used at the 
rate of 2 to 5 pounds per acre, applied either pure or diluted with 
lime or flour, using either a bag and pole, hand powder-gun or geared 
dusting machine. The dusting should be done while the plants 
are wet with dew. When not followed immediately by rain, two 
applications should be sufficient, the first when the eggs commence 







^^iST* 









'•» ^-A/t 



Fig. 203. — Pupa of the bollworm in its burrow in the soil, showing burrow 
made by the larva and filled in, and the exit burrow for the moth also 
made by the larva — natural size. (After Quaintance and Brues, U. S. 
Dept. Agr.) 

to hatch in numbers, usually between July 25th and August 5th, 
and the second about a week later. If rains follow, the applica- 
tions should be at once repeated. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO COTTON 



241 



Inasmuch as the moths prefer to lay their eggs on corn-silk, 
cotton may be very effectively protected by the use of strips of 
late corn and cow-peas, planted through the cotton so as to act as a 
trap crop. Leave vacant strips four or five rods wide across the 
fields when planting cotton. About June 1st plant these with 
alternate rows of Mexican June corn and cow-peas. This will bring 
the corn into silk about the first of August and will attract the 
moths to lay their eggs upon it instead of the cotton, while the 
cow-peas will furnish both food and shelter to the moths. Corn 
should never be planted with cotton when cotton is planted, for 
instead of acting as a trap crop it merely furnishes food upon 
which the worms 
multiply during the 
early season and 
forces those of the 
third generation to 
the cotton. The 
strips of corn and 
peas should be cut 
as soon as the 
worms on them be- 
come fairly grown 
and the land plowed 
to destroy any which may have pupated. " On large plantations the 
planting of small areas of corn here and there in the fields is prac- 
ticable. Such early crops as potatoes, oats, or wheat may be 
followed by corn and cow-peas with practically the same results." 

The Cotton-boll Cutworm * 

The larva of this species is a very common feeder upon the 

foliage of cotton and late in the season bores into the bolls in 

much the same manner as the bollworm. Cotton is but one 

of a long list of food-plants, however, as it is a common pest 

of sugar-beets, corn, wheat, cabbage, potato, asparagus, salsify, 

peach, raspberry, violet, cucumber, tomato, turnips, pea, rape, 

pigweed, cottonwood, and grasses according to Chittenden. 

It occurs commonly throughout the states east of the Rocky 

Mountains. 

* Prodenia ornithogalli Guen. Family Noctuidoe. See Sanderson, I.e., 
and F. H. Chittenden, Bulletin 27, n. s., Div. Ent., U. S. Dept. Agr., p. 64. 




Fig. 204. — The moth of the bollworm or corn ear- 
worm — enlarged one-fourth. (After Quaintance 
and Brues, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



242 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

The moth has a wing expanse of about 1| inches, the fore- 
wings being a dark, rich, velvety brown, marked with black, 
yellow and ochreous as shown in the illustration, while the hind- 
wings are a hght gray. The grown caterpillar is 1| to ij inches 
long, and is quite variable in coloration, some being much darker 
than others, as shown in the illustration. The three whitish 
lines and the double row of triangular brown spots along the back 
of the lighter forms will easily distinguish this caterpillar from 
the boll worm.* 






Fig. 205. — The cotton-boll cutworm {Prodenia ornithogalli Guen.): dark 
form of male moth above; pale form, female moth below; a, pale form 
of larva; b, dark form of larva; c, lateral view of abdominal segments of 
pale form; d, same of dark form. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

Life History. — The life history has not been carefully observed 
in the North, but from observations made by the writer in Texas 
the life history in the Gulf States seems to be as follows: 

The winter is usually passed in the pupal stage in the soil, 
though possibly a few moths, emerging late, hibernate. The 
first brood of moths appears from the middle of May until the 
middle of June, mostly early in June. A second brood appears 
during the latter half of July, and a third late in August and dur- 
ing September. A few of the fourth brood may emerge in Decem- 
ber, but most of them do not do so until the very early spring, 
when they lay eggs upon various weeds on which the larvse feed 

* See Chittenden, I.e., p. 36, for distinguishing characters of related species 
of Prodenia. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO COTTON 243 

until cotton appears. The length of time occupied in the dif- 
ferent stages is seen to be quite variable, but is approximately 
six days for the egg, twenty days for the larva, and thirteen days 
(usually ten to fifteen days) for the pupa — making a total of 
about forty days for the complete life cycle. Dr. Chittenden 
believes that there are two generations in the North and probably 
three in the latitude of the District of Cohunbia. 

Control. — This species has not been sufficiently injurious on 
cotton to warrant extensive experiments in its control. Where 
it attacks young plants of cotton or other crops, it may be com- 
bated with the means suggested for other cutworms. Where 
it becomes injurious to the bolls, it might be controlled by thorough 
dusting or spraying with arsenicals, which would destroy the 
young larvae while they are still feeding on the foliage. 

The Mexican Cotton Boll Weevil * 

Not since the invasion of the Mississippi Valley by the Rocky 
Mountain locusts in the 70's has any insect caused such ruin 

I" 1 




Fig. 206. — The cotton boll weevil, natural size, showing variation in 
size and color. 

to any staple crop as has the boll weevil in the territory affected 

during the past twenty years, and it is one of the factors in the 

recent high prices of cotton. 

Like several of the worst insect pests of the South it is a native 

of Central America and came to us from Mexico, crossing the 

Rio Grande at Brownsville, Texas, about 1890. As early as 1862 

the weevil caused the growers at Monclova, Mexico, to abandon 

cotton culture and when they again planted it in 1893, the beetle 

promptly appeared and destroyed the entire crop. It multiplied 

* Anlhondmus grandis Boh. Family Curculionidce. See W. D. Hunter. 
"The Boll Weevil Problem," Farmers' Bulletin 848, U. S. Dept. Agr.; and 
Hunter and Hinds, Bulletin 51, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr. 



244 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 




rapidly in south Texas, ruining the crops, and by 1895 had spread 
northward to a line extending eastward from San Antonio. 
Since then it has spread northward and eastward, about sixty 
miles a year, until in 1905 it had covered all of Texas and western 
Louisiana and is now found almost throughout the cotton area 
where weather conditions permit. 

In 1904, after an exhaustive study of all available data, the 
writer estimated the loss in Texas alone at $25,000,000, and 

that the pest had then cost the 
State $100,000,000. Owing to 
decrease in acreage and the gen- 
eral use of methods for preventing 
or avoiding injury, the injury 
has not increased proportion- 
ately to the spread of the pest, 
but the total annual loss is at 
least as much as in 1904, though 
no accurate estimates have been 
recently made for the whole ter- 
FiG. 207.— The cotton boll weevil— ritory affected 

enlarged. 2.^/e History.— The parent in- 

sect is a small brownish beetle about one-quarter inch long, 
varying from one-eighth to one-third, including the snout, which 
is about half as long as the body. Recently emerged weevils 
are light yellowish in color, but they soon become grayish- 
brown and later almost blackish. There are many nearly related 
weevils which very closely resemble the boll weevil, and only an 
entomoligist can identify the species with certainty, but the two 
teeth at the tip of the femora of the fore-legs (Fig. 207), are the 
most characteristic structure by which it may be distinguished. 
The boll weevil feeds only upon cotton, and weevils found feeding 
on other plants are certainly of other species. 

However, there has recently been discovered in Arizona an 
insect which very closely resembles the boll weevil and which has 
been classed by authorities as merely a geographical variety 
of the true boll weevil and named Anthonomus grandis thurberiae, 
the Arizona wild cotton weevil, which feeds on a wild cotton 
{Thurberia thespesioides) found growing in that region. This 




245 



246 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



would make it seem probable that the true boll weevil might 
feed on the wild cotton plant as well as on the true cotton. 

The weevils commence to emerge 
from hibernation soon after cotton 
is up and continue to emerge until 
the cotton commences to square 
freely. During the spring the 
beetles feed on the foliage, partic- 
ularly in the tender terminals, and 
as soon as squares are formed the 
females commence to lay their 
eggs in them. Each female lays 
an average of about 140 eggs, lay- 
FiG. 209.— Cotton square with bracts i^g four or five a day. The female 
opened to show weevil at work on 7 •' 

the bud, which shows a feeding drills a small cavity in the square 
puncture. ^^-^^-j -^^ -^ deposits a small oval 

white egg, which hatches in about three days. The grub feeds 
upon the embryo flower, which usually fails to develop, and the 






Fig. 210. — The cotton boll weevil; eggs among the anthers at points indi- 
cated by arrows, the cross-section at the right showing opening through 
which egg was deposited — greatly enlarged. 

infested square generally falls to the ground. In from seven to 
twelve days the larva is full grown and changes to the pupa, 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO COTTON 



247 




which stage lasts from three to five days. Thus from egg to 
adult requires from two to three weeks, though cHmatic conditions 
cause considerable variation in the length of time. The larva is a 
footless, white grub, with 
brown head, which lies curled 
up in the square as shown 
in Fig. 211, where the soft 
white pupa is also found. 
The adult weevils feed en- 
tirely during the day. Their 
length of life depends upon 
various conditions, but in 
the summer season the maj- 
ority do not live over sixty 1^^10.211. — The cotton boll weevil, larva and 
days, while during the cooler 

part of the year those which hibernate live five or six months. 
Many squares are destroyed by the feeding punctures of the 
weevils. ''The males feed upon the squares and bolls without 

moving until the food begins 
to deteriorate. The females 
refi'ain from ovipositing in 
squares visited by other fe- 
males. This applies through- 
out most of the season, but 
late in the fall, when all the 
fruit has become infested, 
several eggs may be placed in 
a single square or boll. As 
many as fifteen larvae have 
been found in a boll. The 
squares are greatly preferred 
as food and as p 1 a c e s for de- 
positing eggs. As long as a 
supply of squares is present 
the bolls are not damaged to 
any serious extent. The bolls, 
therefore, have a fair chance 

^°ho'J4-S?SlTe^/;;?'lStr."S;> to <1«™10P <^ long - squares 
enlarged. are being formed. When- 




r 


' 


i^ 


jm 


^ j^^ 


'^m 


^&jip 


jpiBP 


^!*s 




k_,"^ 


, 1 _,_ 



248 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



ever frost or other unfavorable weather causes the plants to cease 
putting on squares, the weevils attack the bolls. A conservative 
estimate of the possible progeny of a single pair of weevils during a 
season beginning on June 20, and extending to November 4, is 
12,755,100." — Hunter. Although the weevil may develop from 
egg to adult in two or three weeks, it requires an average of about 
forty-three days for a complete generation and there are probably 
not over four or five generations in a season 

With the first killing frosts, most of the immature stages 
developing are killed, though in south Texas they often develop 

during the winter, and the adult 
weevils soon go into hibernation. 
When seeking places for hiber- 
nation the weevils migrate from 
field to field, and it is at this 
season that the principal migra- 
tion of the pest takes place. The 
weevils may hibernate in hedges, 
woods, corn-fields, haystacks, or 
farm buildings, particularly 
about seed-houses or similar sit- 
uations. Experiments have 
shown that Spanish moss forms 
an exceedingly favorable place 
for hibernation, and that many 
weevils pass the winter in it on 
trees some distance above the ground. Others may hiber- 
nate in the cotton-field, crawling into cracks, under grass, 
weeds, and trash, and in the empty cotton burrs, while in the 
more southern sections many hibernate in injured bolls. The 
weevils which hibernate most successfully do so outside of the 
cotton fields. The number which survive the winter has been 
accurately determined under various conditions for several seasons, 
and depends upon the minimum temperature, the amount of moist- 
ure, and the kind of shelter. Thus in central Texas but 2 or 3 per 
cent survive in many normal winters, while in the open winter of 
1906-07 11.5 per cent survived; in South Texas 15 per cent may 
survive, and in experiments made in Central Louisiana in 1908-09 
with rather favorable conditions 20 per cent survived. The 




Fig. 213. — Cotton boll weevils hiber- 
nating in locks of cotton removed 
from old bolls left on stalks over 
winter. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO COTTON 



24d 



importance of reducing the number which survive the winter is 
evident. 

Natural Control.- — If infested squares fall to the ground and lie 
on the unshaded, hot soil the larvae or pupae within them are soon 
killed. As many as 40 per cent of the immature stages have thus 
been found dead in many fields. The importance of wide rows 
and varieties which produce little shade is therefore apparent, and 
it is evident that injury will be much less on dry upland soil, and 
much more severe in bottoms where the cotton grows rank and 
thick. 

Over a score of parasites* prey upon the immature stages 
within the squares or bolls, and they seem to be increasing in num- 
bers and effectiveness as they become adapted to living upon the 
weevil, as they are all native insects which prey upon nearly 




Fig. 214. — Chain cultivator for use in drawing weevil infested squares to center 
of row. (After Hunter, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

related species of weevils and other insects. As many as two-thirds 
of the immature stages have been destroyed by them in certain 
fields, though ordinarily not ever 5 per cent of the total are para- 
sitized. Several species of ants also feed on the immature stages, 
20 to 30 per cent of those in fallen squares and bolls often being 
destroyed by them. The ants destroy many more in the fallen 
squares than in those hanging on the plants, so that the dropping 
of the squares aids their good work as well as exposes the squares 
to the heat ot the sun. 

* See W . D Pierce, Studies of Parasites on the Cotton Boll Weevil, Bulletin 
73, Buieau ot Entomology, U. S Dept Agr. 



250 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 




Usually about 70 per cent of the infested squares drop, and in 
these 70 to 80 per cent of the immature stages are destroyed by 
natural causes.* 

Control. — By far the most important measure in the control of 
the boll weevil is the destruction of the plants in the fall as 

soon as the cotton can be picked. This 
both detroys the weevils and pre- 
vents their increase. The stalks 
should be plowed out and burned as 
soon as possible. It is well to plow 
out all but a row here and there 
upon which the weevils will concen- 
trate, then as soon as the piles are 
dry enough to burn, cut the remain- 
ing rows and burn at once. In this 
way the great bulk of the adult 
weevils and all of the immature stages 
in the squares and bolls are des- 

_ „^^ „, troyed. The few escaping weevils will 

Fig. 215. — oolenopsis gemmata , . i . i ,• ,i ,i 

Fab., a native ant which is a be starved out before the weather 
valuable enemy of the boll becomes cold enough for them to 
weevil — much enlarged. . 

(After Hunter and Hinds, U. hibernate, or will be so weakened as 
S. Dept. Agr.) ^o die in "hibernation. Thus it has 

been shown by Professor Wilmon Newell, in Louisiana, that 
where the weevils were forced into hibernation on October 15th 
only 3 per cent survived the winter, but that when the destruction 
of the stalks was put off until after December 15th, 43 percent sur- 
vived, with proportional numbers at intervening dates. Further- 
more, the development of the late broods which furnish the majority 
of the weevils which hibernate is effectively prevented. The re- 
moval of the plants also facilitates winter plowing, which aids in pro- 
ducing an early crop the next year. Many experiments and the 
experience of practical planters have shown that the destruction of 
the stalks in the fall is of primary importance in the control of the 
weevil, particularly upon bottom lands. Experiments made in 
Calhoun County, Texas, where the stalks were destroyed on 410 

* See W. E. Hinds, Some Factors in the Natural Control of the Mexican 
Cotton Boll Weevil, Bulletin 74, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO COTTON 



251 



acres, showed an increase the next season of over one-quarter 
bale per acre as compared with fields where the stalks had been 
left standing, the benefit being worth $14.56 per acre, or over 
twenty-nine times the cost of the work. It is better to plow out 
the stalks than to cut them, particularly in the far South, as the 
stalks will frequently sprout out in the late fall and thus furnish 
food for the late weevils, or will sprout in early spring and furnish 
food for those first emerging from hibernation. For the same 
reasons all volunteer cotton should be destroyed. 

It is evident that the thorough defoliation of the plants by the 
cotton leafworm will secure much the same result as the destruc- 
tion of the stalks, by 
removing the food 
supply of the weevil. 
Planters should not 
poison the leaf worms, 
therefore, when they 
appear during the lat- 
ter part of the season 
in fields injured by 
the weevil, for though 
formerly much 
dreaded they are now 
a great aid in pre- 
venting the increase 
of the weevil in fall. 

It has been demon- 
strated that injury by 
the weevil is never so 
severe where cotton 
is planted after some other crop, this being due to the fact that 
the weevils do not fly far from their hibernating quarters in the 
spring. 

By hastening the maturity of the crop, injury by the weevils 
may be avoided by making the crop before they have become 
most abundant. Everything possible should therefore be done 
toward hastening maturity, and this will be of importance in rela- 
tion to the early destruction of the stalks in the fall. Land should 
be plowed in the winter and a good seed bed prepared. Cotton 




Fig. 216. — Bracon mellitor Say, one of the most im- 
portant parasites of the boll weevil larvfe — much 
enlarged. (After Hunter and Hinds, U. S. Dept. 
Agr.) 



252 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

should be planted as early as possible with safety. A liberal use 
of commercial fertilizers will hasten the growth of the crop even on 
fairly fertile soils, and on poor soils their use will return a hand- 
some profit. Early varieties of cotton should be planted, among 
the most satisfactory being, Rowden, Triumph, Cleveland Big 
Boll, Cook's Improved, King, Hawkins' Early Prolific, and Sim- 
kins. Seed should be secured from the originators of the varie- 
ties as far as possible. Chop out the plants as soon as possible. 
Frequent light cultivation will be found of the greatest importance 
in hastening the crop. Deep cultivation and cultivating close to 
the plants should be avoided as causing the squares to shed, and 
the old practice of " laying by " by running a broad sweep down 
the middles should be avoided. The lightest possible cultivation 
to keep the surface soil stirred is the best. All of these methods 
which aid in hastening the maturity of the crop are commonly 
called " cultural methods " of preventing loss from the weevil. 
They are not directed againts the weevil itself, but are merely the 
best agricultural methods for securing an early crop, and on light 
upland soils attention to these methods will alone be sufficient to 
secure a good crop. 

It has already been shown that the immature stages in squares 
falling on the hot soil will be killed by the heat. To aid in this 
the rows should be planted fairly wide apart, and varieties pro- 
ducing a minimum of shade are preferable as are those which 
readily shed their squares when injured. As most of the squares 
drop beneath the plants where they are shaded, any means of 
scraping them into the centers of the rows will aid in their de- 
struction. For this purpose a chain cultivator as described by 
Hunter (I.e.) (Fig. 215) has proven very efficient for this purpose. 
The chains may be attached to ordinary cultivators by special 
attachments. 

During 1909 Professor Wilmon Newell and his assistants 
demonstrated at several places in Louisiana that the weevil may 
be successfully poisoned by the use of dry or powdered arsenate 
of lead, though previous experiments with dry Paris green and 
arsenate of lead as a liquid spray had not proven of practical 
value for various reasons. An increase of 71 per cent of the crop 
was secured on considerable areas and the results were duplicated 
by practical planters. Professor Newell recommends that the 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO COTTON 



253 



poison be applied first when the first squares appear and that five 
applications be given at weekly intervals. The poison must be 
applied by hand with a powder-gun so that it is blown into the 
squares. The first application requires about 2| pounds per acre 
and the last 5 to 7 pounds. Since that time there has been a 
very considerable amount of experimental work on boll weevil 
poisoning and opinions as to the value of the treatment have been 
variable. All authorities seem now to agree that poisoning with 
arsenate of lead or of calcium, applied in the form of a dust, is 
a valuable means of protection from the weevil, somewhat more 
favorable results having been secured from the arsenate of lead 
than from the calcium arsenate. The number of treatments and 
the amount of material used will vary somewhat with the infesta- 
tion and local conditions but eight pounds per acre has been used 
with profit. Professor Newell puts special-emphasis on applying 
the material so that it will cover the squares, bolls and terminal 
buds rather than the foliage.* 



The Pink Bollworm f 

An insect which might become of the greatest importance to 
the cotton industry is the pink bollworm, now present in this 
country in only small areas in p^,^, 

Texas and Louisiana and being 
eradicated in that area by vigor- 
ous measures prosecuted by the 
Bureau of Entomology of the 
United States Department of Agri- 
culture, which also maintains a 
strict quarantine to prevent the 
spread, even prohibiting the grow- 
ing of cotton in certain counties 
in order to form a barrier to prog- 
ress by creating a belt where no 
food can be secured by the insect. Fig. 217.— The pink bollworm {Pec- 
The pink bollworm is probably ^X^i '(SticM^' 
a native of southern Asia and Research, Vol. IX, No. 10.) 

* See Newell and Smith, Circular 33, La. Crop Pest Comm., ad Newell 
and Bynum, Jour. Ec. Ent., Vol. 13, No. 1, 1920; also B. R. Coad, U. S. 
Dept. Agr., Bulletin 731. 

t Pectinophora gossypiella Saunders. Family Gelechiidce. See W. D. Hun- 
ter, Bulletin 723, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 




254 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

is found in various parts of Asia and Africa and in Hawaii, Brazil 
and Mexico, having been introduced from the latter country 
into Texas. 

The adult is a small moth of brownish color and with narrow, 

fringed wings. The wing expanse is never as great as one inch. 

piY°'™>™> PUTE n The larva is a small, smooth, 

'^^^^^^^(^^f^^^^^^f^&jf^^ pinkish caterpillar with 

i^^^^^^^^^^^^^^y^^^k eight pairs of legs and pro- 

^^^^"^^ ^^•^^^•0^^'^^'^='^^'='^^^ jggg^ being in this respect 

very unlike the boll weevil 

Fig. 218 — The pink bollworm: outline , u- u • a ^+i^oc, t+ 

drawing of larva, showing structure; ^^rva which IS footless. It 

much enlarged. (After Busck, Jour. Agr. feeds entirely within the 

Research, Vol. IX, No. 10.) ^o^g ^nd even in the seeds 

of cotton and it is in the seeds that it is most likely to be carried 
from place to place. 

Since it is in the process of extermination it is not necessary 
to do more here than to call attention to the seriousness of the 
insect and to repeat the warnings to cotton growers to report 
promptly to the Federal or State authorities the presence of any 
insect which might possibly be the pink bollworm. 

The Red Spider * 

The so-called red spider is a very minute reddish mite which 
attacks a great variety of cultivated plants and is frequently 
injurious, often being mistaken for a fungous disease and called 
a rust. They pass the winter mainly as adults and they breed 
continuously throughout the growing season of plants, migrating 
from plant to plant in search of food. They are found over most 
of the eastern part of the country and on the Pacific coast but 
are much more abundant in the cotton growing regions than 
elsewhere. 

Leaves of badly infested plants turn yellow, wilt, droop and 
finally fall off. 

Control measures recommended as summarized by McGregor 
and McDonough, 1. c, are: 

" To prevent injury to cotton by red spiders the following 
steps should be taken: (1) Destruction of all weeds around the 

* Tetranychus telarius Linn. Family Tetranychidae. Order Acarina. 
See McGregor and McDonough, Bulletin 416, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO COTTON 



255 



farm during the winter and early spring; (2) spraying of culti- 
vated plants around the dwelHngs with a contact insecticide; 
(3) maintaining a finely pulverized surface soil; (4) destruction 
of early infested plants on large areas of heavy infestation by 
plowing up and burning; and finally, if the infestation is more 








Fig. 219. — The common red spider {Tetranychus telarius): 1, the egg; 2, the 
newly vhatched larva; S, the recently molted protonymph; 4, the mature 
deutonymph just prior to the final molt; 5, the adult female. Highly 
magnified. (After McGregor and McDonough, Bull. 416, U. S. Dept. 
of Agr.) 

or less general, (5) spraying the cotton plants with one of the 
following contact insecticides: Potassium sulphide, lime-sulfur, 
kerosene emulsion, or a flour-paste solution." 



CHAPTER XIV 

INSECTS INJURIOUS TO POTATOES AND TOMATOES 

The Potato Stalk-borer * 

In some sections this insect has rivaled the famous Colorado 
potato-bug in the damage it has inflicted upon potato-vines. It 




Fig. 220. — Work of potato stalk-borer in potato-vines. (After J. B. Smith.) 

was recorded as badly damaging the crop in Iowa in 1890, 

and was found by Dr. Riley in Missouri as early as 1869. The 

beetles were first noted in New Jersey in 1895, and have been 

injurious in Maryland and most of the Middle States. 

Life History. — The grubs, which bore into the stalks of the vines, 

ate the larvae of some small ashen-gray beetles which appear early 

* Trichobaris trinotata Say. Family Curculionidce. 

256 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO POTATOES AND TOMATOES 257 



in spring and into June. These beetles are about one-fourth of an 
inch long, with a long, black beak or snout, and are marked at the 
base of the wing-covers by three black spots which give the insect 
its specific name, trinotata. Each beetle punctures a small hole in 
the base of a stem by means of its beak, hollows out a small cavity, 
and there lays a single small, oval, whitish egg. From these eggs 
some small, white grubs with brown heads hatch in a few days and 
commence to bore into the stalk. ■ These gru-bs keep eating, either 
in the main stalk or branches, from August 1st to September 1st, 
when they have become full grown. At this time the grubs are 
about one-half an inch long, of a dirty white or yellowish color. 




Fig. 221. 



-Potato stalk-borer (Trichobaris trinotata). Larva, pupa and adult. 
(After J. B. Smith.) 



with a yellowish-brown, horny head, and without legs. About the 
middle of August, as a general rule, the grubs construct small, oval 
cocoons of chips and fibres in the stalk of the vine near the sur- 
face of the soil, and there transform to the pupae. During late 
August and September the mature beetles shed the pupal skins, in 
which they have remained dormant for the last few weeks, but 
remain in the vines during the winter, and do not come forth till 
the following spring. 

Remedies. — On account of its internal feeding habits no poison 
can be successfully used against this pest, and the only remedy, 
but a good one, is to rake up the vines and burn them as soon as 
the potatoes have ^een dug. As this insect also feeds upon the 
Jamestown weed, horse-nettle, and other weeds of the Nightshade 
family, or Solanacece, these should be cut down very closely. 



258 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

When the grubs are noticed in the plants, a good allowance of fer- 
tilizer will do much to quicken growth and thus enable them to 
mature a crop. 

The Potato Tuber-worm * 

The most serious pest of the potato in California is the Tuber- 
worm, which in tobacco regions of the Southern States is known 
as the " split worm " or leaf -miner (see page 223). Not infre- 
quently 25 per cent of the crop is lost in infested regions in 
California, injury occurring both in the fields and to the tubers 
in storage. As the pest is carried in the potatoes and breeds in 
storage throughout the warm winters of California, and when 
exported across the Pacific, it is necessary to inspect closely 
potatoes from infested regions. Although no injury to potatoes 
has occurred outside of California, and though the insect probably 
could not exist in the North, it may well be guarded against in 
the Southern States, where it is a common tobacco pest.f 

Moths which have developed from larvsB working in stored 
potatoes are on the wing when young potatoes are up, and lay 
their eggs at the base of the leaves. The young larvse bore into 
the stalks, often causing the plants to wilt and die. On older 
plants or when the stalks harden, the larvsG leave the stalks and 
enter the tubers, particularly where they may be exposed. Where 
potatoes are exposed by being insufficiently covered the moths 
will lay their eggs directly upon them, as they also do upon po- 
tatoes exposed in the field after digging. 

Most of the observations upon the life history seem to have 
been made upon the insect when breeding in stored potatoes. 
The eggs are about one-fiftieth inch long, oval, white, and laid 
singly or in pairs, about the eyes of the potatoes, or in similar 
rough places, where they are seen with difficulty. They hatch 
in a week or ten days, and the young larvsB are about one-twenty- 
fifth inch long of a transparent white color. The larvae burrow 
beneath the skin and bore into the potatoes, filling theu' 
burrows with grass and excrement, which soon give rise to various 
rots which cause the destruction of the tuber, already rendered 
imfit for food by the burrows. The larvse become full grown 

* Phthorimcea opercidella Zell. See W. T. Clarke, Bulletin 135, California 
Agr. Exp. Sta. Also J. E. Graf Bulletin 427, U. S. Dept. of Agr, 

t Recently serious injury by this insect has been reported to potatoes 
near Hallettsville, Texas. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO POTATOES AND TOMATOES 259 

in about six or seven weeks. They are then about a half 
inch long. The head is dark brown; the first segment is an 
old rose color, with dark brown shield on the back; the second 
segment is a similar clouded pink; while the third and succeeding 
segments are a clouded white, often becoming yellowish or green- 
ish, according to the food eaten. The full-grown larva re- 
turns to the mouth of the burrow and there makes its 
cocoon, or leaves it and forms the cocoon in some depression of 
the potato or in some crack of the storage vessel or in a fold 
of the bag. The cocoon is constructed quite differently from 
that of most moths, as described by Mr. Clarke. The larva first 
makes a mat of silk and then forms an outer layer to the surface 
of which particles of dirt and rubbish adhere so that the cocoon 
is well concealed. When this pocket-like cocoon is finished the 
larva enters it and closes the open end and in it transforms to 
the pupa. The pupal stage lasts about two weeks, so that the 
complete life cycle requires from nine to twelve weeks, there being 
several generations during the year, according to the temperature. 
Control. — As the insect breeds on various common weeds of 
the Nightshade family {Solanacece) , it is important that they be 
destroyed wherever found. Seed potatoes must be free from the 
larvae, or they will soon give rise to moths which will infest a 
whole field. When young plants are found wilting, the infested 
stalks should be cut and destroyed as soon as possible to prevent 
the further development and spread of the pest. Care should 
be taken in cultivating to hill up the soil, or thoroughly cover 
the tubers, so that they are not exposed. After digging, the 
potatoes should not be left exposed in the field any longer than 
is absolutely necessary and should not be covered with the tops 
to shade them, as is often done, as this furnishes a shelter for the 
moths and induces oviposition upon the tubers. Infested fields 
should have the stalks and all rubbish and refuse thoroughly 
raked up and bm'ned as soon as possible, or sheep and hogs may 
be turned into the fields to destroy the stages which may be 
left in the vines or in the soil. Where fields have been flooded 
for two or three weeks after the crop has been dug, they have 
been entirely freed of the pest. For the treatment of stored 
potatoes, fumigation with carbon bisulfide in a tight room 
seems to be the only satisfactory method. This should be done 



260 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



as described for grain insects (see page 187). The tubers should 
be fumigated as soon as stored, and the treatment should be 
repeated at intervals of two weeks, four or five fumigations 
being recommended to free the potatoes entirely of all stages. 
Obviously it will be important to sort over infested tubers and 
remove all which are materially injured to prevent the increase 
of rot in others. 

Colorado Potato-beetle * 

First and foremost among the enemies of the potato-grower 
stands the Colorado potato-beetle — the insect which in the early 
seventies, on account of our ignorance of it, was made an entomo- 




FiG. 222. — The Colorado potato-beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata Say.): a, 
eggs; h, larva; c, pupa; d, beetle; e, elytra or wing-cover of beetle; 
/, leg of beetle. (After Riley.) 

logical bugbear. But "there's no great loss without some small 
gain," and we may be thankful that the invasion of this beetle 
also brought about the use of Paris green, an insecticide which has 
since saved millions upon millions of dollars to the American 
farmer. Thus, with an effectual remedy which is nov/ used where 
this pest occurs as regularly as potatoes are planted, " familiarity 
has bred contempt," and to-day we have but little fear of its 
attack. 

* Leptinotarsa decemlineata Say. Family Chrysomelidoe. See F. H. Chit- 
tenden, Circular 87, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Agr. Dept. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO POTATOES AND TOMATOES 261 

History. — As is probably known to most of the older genera- 
tion who watched its spread eastward, the Colorado potato-beetle, 
as its name indicates, was a native of the Rocky Mountain region, 
and until about 1855 was satisfied with feeding upon various com- 
mon weeds of the same genus as the potato-plant, principally 
Solanum datura, and closely allied genera. But with the settle- 
ment of this country and the introduction of the Irish potato, 
these bugs also began to take advantage of the fruits of civilization 
and transferred their feeding-grounds from the roadside to the 
potato-patch, and rapidly spread eastward from one to another, 
as well as being transported in the shipping of the potatoes. 

Thus, in 1859 they had reached a point one hundred miles west 
of Omaha, Neb. ; five years later they crossed the Mississippi into 
Illinois; and they advanced steadily eastward till recorded in 
the Atlantic States in 1874. Though slow to be introduced into 
some few sections of the country, it is safe to assert that this pest 
may to-day be found almost wherever the potato is grown in the 
United States or southern Canada. 

Life History. — During October- the beetles enter the earth and 
there hibernate till the warm sunshine of April or May brings 
them forth. As soon as the young plants appear, the female 
beetles deposit their yellow eggs upon the underside of the leaves 
near the tips, each female laying an average of about five hundred 
eggs during the course of a month. Meanwhile the beetles have 
done considerable damage by eating the young and tender plants. 
In about a week there hatch a horde of very 
small but very hungry larvse, which fairly 
gorge themselves with potato-foliage and 
increase in size with astonishing rapidity. 
In two and a half to three weeks, after 
having eaten an amount of food out of « ^ \q 

all proportion to their size, the larvae become yig. 223. a, beakof pre- 

fuU grown, and enter the earth, where they daceous bug; h, Podi- 
. ^, 1 11 ^ , s- ^ *"s spinosus Dall.; c, 

lorm smooth, oval cells, and transform to beak of plant-feeding 

pupae. In a week or two the adult beetles bug. - (After Riley.) 
emerge from the pupal skins and after feeding for a couple of 
weeks, deposit eggs for a second generation, which develops in 
the same way, and the beetles from which hibernate as already 
described. Throughout the territory where the beetles are most in- 




262 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

jurious there are two generations a year, but further south there 
is evidence of at least a partial, if not complete, third generation, 
and in the northern range of the species there is but one gen- 
eration a year. 

Natural Enemies. — One of the chief agencies to prevent the 
excessive multiplication of this pest is the weather. Thus, Pro-. 
fessor Otto Lugger records that in Minnesota, late in the fall 
of 1894, the beetles were lured from their winter quarters by a 
few warm days, and most of them subsequently perished from 
hunger or frost. In addition to this during the late summer of 
1894 there was an excessive drouth, so that but few of the second 
brood matured. Thus in 1895 there were very few of the in- 
sects to be seen. 

Among the birds, the common crow, the red-breasted gros- 
beak, and turkeys often feed upon this pest to a considerable 
extent. 

Probably the most destructive insect-parasite of the larvae is a 
Tachinid-fly known to science as Lydella doryphoroe Riley, which 

rather closely resembles the com- 
mon house fly, both in size and 
color. A single egg is laid on a 
potato bug and from it hatches a 
small, footless maggot which bur- 
rows inside the bug. When the 
larva enters the earth, the effect 
of the maggot's work becomes ap- 
parent, and instead of transform- 

_ , . . , , ^ , ing to a pupa and beetle, it shrivels 

Fig. 224.— Tachinid parasite of Col- , ,. , , . ,- 

orado potato-beetle {Lydella dory- up and dies; but the maggot itself 

phorce Ril.). (After Riley.) contracts into a hard, brown pupa, 

£rom which the fly eventually emerges. Thus in 1868, when 
first noted by Dr. C. V. Riley, he asserted that in Missouri fully 
10 per cent of the second brood and one-half of the third were 
destroyed by this parasite. 

Many of our common lady-bird beetles and their larvae check 
the pest by feeding upon the eggs. Several predaceous bugs, par- 
ticularly the spined soldier-bug {Podisus spinosus Dall.) (Fig. 223) 
are of value in destroying the larvae, into which they thrust their 
short, powerful beaks, and then suck out the juices of the body, 










■*, «W^Vu" ' ■ ^-=-'-. :^ I5*SfRfia&5«^!ffliKai«3j' . J 



Fici. 225. — - Fioldspniyer, with modifications, adapted for pot.ato spray- 
ing by L. C. Corbett, operating at the Virginia Truck Experiment Station, 
Norfolk, Va. 263 



264 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



leaving an empty skin. One or two of these closely resemble the 
common squash-bug (Anasa, tristis De G.), but are really very 
dissimilar, and whereas the beaks of the predaceous forms are 
short and thick as in Fig. 223, a, those, of plant-feeders, like the 
squash-bug, are long and slender, as in Fig. 223, b. 

Several species of ground -beetles are often found preying upon 
the larvae and beetles, but, unlike the bugs, attack them by means 




Fig. 226.— Murky ground-beetle (Harpalus caliginosus) : a, its larva; b, head 
of larva showing mouthparts. (After Riley.) 

of their powerful biting jaws. These beetles are also exceedingly 

beneficial in feeding upon many other injurious insects, and are 

among the farmers' best insect friends (Fig. 227). 

Remedies. — As an artificial remedy for this pest, Paris green 

has long been proven to be both effectual and practical. For 

small areas it may be used dry 
by mixing it with fifty times 
its weight of dry flour, land- 
plaster, or air-slaked lime, 
and should be applied while 
the plants are still wet with 
dew, either by a perforated 
can, or, better, by one of the 

„„ _, , , . improved powder-guns by 

Fig. 227. — rower sprayer adapted for r- i • i <• 

spraying several rows of plan,ts at one means ot which two rows of 

time. Courtesy the Bean Spray Pump Co. plants may be powdered at 

once. On larger areas spraying will be found more satisfactory. 
One pound of Paris green and 1 pound of freshly slaked quick- 
lime to 50 gallons of water will kill all the larvae, but often 2 to 3 
pounds are necessary to destroy the beetles. 





Eotato 
eetle 
or slu^ 



POTATO 
BEETLE 




ARSENATE OF LEAD 

OR OTHER ARSENICAL 



Use arsenate of lead in proportion of 2 pounds cf i 
powdered form(or4 lbs of pastejto 50 g'allonsof 
vvater.Mix first with small quantity of water and 
then stir thoroughly into the full amount. 

If arseaite of zinc or arsenate of lime is used 
follow^ directions on package. 

Apply with a good pump throwing a fine 
mist. Cover the foliaje completely: 

Be?in spraying •when the beetles first appear 
Spray for the slugs when the eggs are hatching 
an.d repeat as often as necessary. 

I. .' ' '"'Til' ' ' ■-'f' 



;/ Infall beetles reenter fround to spend winter. In iprins the/' 
'/ emci^e to fepd on the young plants. Then the females la/ theirejjs ■ 
7 onuncJer sides of leaves, which produce first sencration of rluSs.//'^ 



Fig. 228. — Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Department of Agriculture, popular 
poster on the potato-beetle. 

265 



266 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD. 

Many growers now prefer to use arsenate of lead at from 3 to 5 
pounds to the barrel, as there is no danger of burning the foliage 
with it, and it is much more adhesive. Where Bordeaux mixture 
is not used the arsenate of lead is much preferable on account of its 
superior adhesiveness. Where Bordeaux mixture is used, arsenite 
of lime, or arsenite of lime made with soda, may be used, but these 
homemade arsenicals should not be used alone, on account of 
their burning the foliage. 

The vines should be sprayed first when they are a few inches 
high, and the spraying repeated once or twice at intervals of ten 
days or two weeks. The larvae are so easily killed by arsenicals 
that potato growers no longer fear their work, but large quantities 




Fig. 229. — The convergent ladybird {Hippodamia convergens): a, adult; b 
pupa; c, larva; enlarged. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

of Paris green are wasted by careless application, and by dusting 
unduly large amounts with poor apparatus, which not infrequently 
results in burning the foliage. For small areas a bucket or knap- 
sack pump will be found satisfactory, but for over an acre a barrel 
pump with a row attachment will prove more economical, and for 
over ten acres a geared machine spraying several rows at once will 
be needed. Cleaning up the vines and plowing potato land in the 
fall after the crop has been harvested will aid in reducing the num- 
bers of the hibernating beetles. 

Flea-beetles * 

While the potatoes and tomatoes are but a few inches high they 
are often attacked by myriads of small black beetles, which from 

* Family Chrysomelidce. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO POTATOES AND TOMATOES 267 

their power of making long quick jumps are known as flea-beetles. 
They soon riddle the foliage, often so badly that the plants wilt, and 
replanting is necessary, particularly with tomatoes. 

Several species are known to attack the potato, the two most 
common being the potato or cucumber flea-beetle (Epitrix cucum- 
eris Harris) and one which Professor H. A. Garman has styled the 
Southern Potato Flea-beetle {Epitrix fuscula). The Tobacco Flea- 
beetle (Epitrix parvula) is not uncommonly found on the vines in 
sections where tobacco is also grown, and other species do similar 
injury in other sections. All of these species are, however, essen- 
tially the same in habits and life history, and the same remedies 
apply to all. 

The potato flea-beetle* is the most destructive. It is only 
one-sixteenth inch long, jet black, except the yellowish antennae 





a b 

Fig. 230. — a, potato flea^beetle; h, egg-plant flea-beetle, both greatly en- 
larged. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

and legs, and there is a deep groove across the base of the thorax 
(Fig. 230, a). It seems to occur throughout the United States, 
but is more commonly injurious in the North. Eggplant and 
tobacco, as well as numerous garden vegetables are similarly 
injured. This species has commonly been called the cucumber flea- 
beetle from its specific name, but it is evidently a misnomer, as it 
is much more abundant upon the potato and related plants. 

During the winter the beetles hibernate under leaves, rubbish, 
etc., and in the spring come forth and lay their eggs upon the 
roots of some of our common weeds of the Nightshade family, 
such as the horse-nettle, Jamestown-weed, Desmodium, etc., 

* Epitrix cucumeris Harris. See O. A. Johannsen, Bulletin 211, Maine 
Agr. Expt. Sta. 



268 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

in May and June. The larvae mine in the roots of these plants 
and transform to pupae in small earthen cells among the roots, 
from which the beetles come forth in the spring to attack the 
foliage of the plants mentioned. According to Johannsen, (I. c.) 
the larvae feed mainly on the roots, root-stalks and tubers of the 
potato. When they feed on the tubers they are responsible 
for the condition described by growers as " pimply potatoes." 
There is but one generation per year in Maine and probably in 
the Northern States generally, according to the same authority. 

Injury is usually due to the feeding of the adult beetles which 
have come out of hibernation in the spring. These riddle the 
leaves by their feeding, with small holes which look like they 
might have been made by a charge of fine birdshot. Occasionally 
the larvae injure seed tubers in the spring, but this is rare. 







Fig. 231. — Larva of potato flea-beetle. (After Johannsen, 1. c.) 

The Eggplant Flea-beetle* so nearly resembles the previous 
species that it will not be distinguished from it but by the entomol- 
ogist. It is slightly larger, however, with the wing-covers more 
hairy, and the groove at the base of the thorax is not so distinct. 
It has much the same food-plants, but is particularly abundant 
on eggplant, and is more commonly injurious in the South, below 
the Ohio and Potomac rivers. 

The Tobacco Flea-beetle f has been previously discussed 
(page 212) but should be mentioned, as it is commonly injurious 
to potato, tomato, and eggplant throughout the South, as well 
as to tobacco, and occasionally to corn and other plants. 

Control. — It has been found that Bordeaux mixture acts as 
an excellent repellant against these little beetles, and that plants 
well covered with it are not seriously injured. Inasmuch as 
it is always advisable to spray potatoes as soon as they are a 
few inches high for fungous diseases and for the Colorado potato 
beetle, by applying the spray as soon as possible after the plants 

* Epitrix fiiscula Cr. 
t Epitrix parvula Fab. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO POTATOES AND TOMATOES 269 

are up they will be protected. Both potatoes and tomatoes 
should be sprayed with Bordeaux mixture and arsenate of lead 
or Paris green as soon as they are a few inches high. The spray 
should be applied liberally so as to give the plants a distinct 
coating of the mixture. Tomatoes are particularly susceptible 
to injury and might be dipped in arsenate of lead when planting, 
using 1 pound to 10 gallons of water. The destruction of the 
weeds upon which the larvae commonly develop is obviously 
important in preventing their multiplication. 

Where injury by the larvae is done to the tubers, it is recom- 
mended that they be dug as soon as possible, and be left ex- 
posed to the sun for a few hours after digging so as to harden the 
skin, before being stored. If damage continues in storage, the 
tubers may be fumigated with carbon bisulfide, as recommended 
for grain insects. 

Potato-scab and Insects 

That certain forms of what is commonly termed "potato- 
scab" are due to the work of insects has frequently been shown. 
In 1895 Professor A. D. Hopkins,* of the West Virginia Agricultural 
Experiment Station, reported some very careful original investiga- 
tions upon two species of gnats, Epidapiis scabies Hopk. and Sciara 
sp., the larvae of which had been conclusively shown to cause 
a "scab'' upon the tubers by boring into them. The larvae 
or maggots of the Potato-scab Gnat are about one-sixth of an 
inch long, and are the young of a wingless gnat shown, very 
greatly enlarged, in Fig, 232. The females deposit their eggs on 
the potatoes in storage from autumn to spring, and the maggots 
hatching from them enter old scab spots or injured places. Under 
favorable conditions a generation may be developed in twenty 
to twenty-five days. Later in the spring the eggs are deposited 
in manure or other decomposing material, on seed potatoes or 
on growing tubers to which they may be carried on seed potatoes. 
When they become well established in a potato, it is soon de- 
stroyed if they are not overcome by their natural enemies, or 
unless the soil becomes dry, when they soon disappear. In- 
fested places look very much like the ordinary scab produced 
by the scab fungus and may be readily mistaken for it. Such 

* A. D. Hopkins, Special Bulletin 2 (Vol. IV, No. 3), W. Va. Agr. Exp. 
Sta., p. 97. 



270 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



injury was quite general and serious in West Virginia in 1891 and 
1892. Dr. Hopkins found that "they breed in and are especially 
common in barnyard-manure," that "excessive moisture in the 
soil has been observed to be the most favorable condition for 
their development," and that "soaking the seed-potatoes in a 
solution of corrosive sublimate previous to planting " will kill all 
the eggs and young larvae, as it will also destroy the spores of 
the potato-scab fungus. 

Professor H. Garman* has also recorded the injuries of several 
species of millipedes, or "thousand-legged worms," Cambala 
annulata and Parajulus impressus, as causing a scab by gnawing 
into the surface of the tubers. Though both of these observations 
are unquestionably true, such injury has not occurred in other 




Fig. 232. — Potato scab-gnat {Epidapus scabei Hopk.); a, fly; i, larva; g, 
egg; h, egg mass — much enlarged. (After Hopkins.) 

parts of the country, and it is improbable that any large portion 
of potato-scab is due to these insects. Potato-scab is a fungous 
disease, which, as already noted, may be destroyed by soaking 
the seed-potatoes in a solution of corrosive sublimate. 

Blister-beetles f 

Long before we had made the acquaintance of the Colorado 
potato-beetle, several species of blister-beetles frequently brought 
themselves into notice by their injuries, and, therefore, are now 
known as the "old-fashioned potato-bugs." The name of 
"bhster-beetles" has been bestowed upon them because of the 
blistering effect which they have upon the skin, they being nearly 
related to the Spanish fly, used for that purpose. 

One of the most common of these is the Striped Blister-beetle, 
which has three yellow stripes upon its wing-covers, while 

* H. Garman, Bulletin 61, Ky. Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 18. 
t Family Meloidae. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO POTATOES AND TOMATOES 271 

two other common forms are of a slate-black color. Very often 
when these' beetles congregate in numbers they are a great 
nuisance, not only in the potato-patch, but upon many other 
plants of the garden or truck-farm. 

Unfortunately, they present to the farmer a very peculiar 
problem, for while the beetles are often exceedingly injurious, 
the larvae are beneficial, eating large quantities of grasshoppers' 
eggs 

Life Histonj. — The life of these insects is unique. The female 
lays a large number of eggs in a small cavity in the earth, and 
from these hatch some small, long-legged larvae, which run about 
searching for the pod-like masses of grasshoppers' eggs, upon 
which they feed. As soon as the appetite of one of these little 
egg-hunters is appeased, he sheds his skin, and now being sur- 
rounded by food and no longer needing his long legs for running, 
in the next stage of his existence his legs become very short and 
rudimentary, and he remains almost immobile while feeding upon 
the rest of the eggs 

Control. — Spraying with Paris green or arsenate of lead, as 
advised for the Colorado potato-beetle will kill the beetles, and 
where the vines have been regularly sprayed but little trouble 
will be had with them Where they suddenly appear in large 
swarms in gardens or on truck land, they are often destroyed by 
a line of men and children slowly driving them with branches, as 
the beetles move but slowly If a ditch is available it may be 
oiled, and the beetles destroyed like grasshoppers, or they may 
be driven into a windrow of straw, hay, or any inflammable rubbish 
and burned in it. 

Three-lined Leaf-beetle * 

Closely related to the Colorado potato-beetle, and very 
similar to it in habits, is the Three-lined Leaf-beetle. The eggs 
may be distinguished by the fact that they are usually laid in 
rows along the midrib on the under side of the leaf, while those 
of the potato-beetle are laid indiscriminately in bunches. The 
larvae, however, may be readily distinguished from all other 
insects attacking the potato by being covered with a disgusting 
mass of their own excrement. 

* Lema trilineata Oliv. Family Chrysomelidce. 



272 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 




Fig. 233. — Three-lined leaf -beetle {Lema trilineata 
Oliv.); cf, larva; h, pupa; d, eggs; beetle at right. 
(After Riley.) 



There are two broods during the season, the larvae of the first 
appearing in June, and those of the second in August; but the 
beetles of the second brood do not emerge until the following 
spring. In other respects the hfe history is practically the same 
as that of the Colorado potato-beetle. The beetle is of a pale 

yellow color, with 
three black stripes on 
its back, and in a gen- 
eral way resembles 
the common striped 
cucumber- beetle 
(Diahrotica vittata 
Fab.), though it is 
somewhat larger and 
the thorax is decid- 
edly constricted. 
In case it becomes necessary to destroy the blister-beetles, both 
they and the three-lined leaf-beetle may be readily disposed of by 
applying arsenicals as advised for the Colorado potato-beetle. 

The Potato Aphids * 

The potato aphid, also called the pink and green aphid of 
the potato because it occurs in both these colors, is a widely 
distributed pest which occasionally does a considerable amount 
of injury to the potato. It attacks, beside the potato, the pepper 
vine and several other unrelated plants. 

The insect is large for an aphid, and may be either pink or 
green, and lacks the dark markings characteristic of many species 
of aphids. 

The aphids are found in the spring and early summer feeding 
on rose bushes and possibly other plants and from these they 
migrate about mid-summer to potato and other food plants. 
Both winged and wingless forms migrate, an unusual occurrence 
as ordinarily only winged individuals take part in the migration. 
In late summer and early fall the reverse migration takes place. 

Not a great part of the season is spent on the potato but in 

the time the aphids are present they are able to do a great amount 

* Macrosiphum solanifolii Ashmead. See Dr. Edith M. Patch, Bulletin 
242, Maine Agr. Expt. Sta. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO POTATOES AND TOMATOES 273 

of damage when they are at all numerous. In addition to the 
direct injury the aphids do they create conditions favorable for 
fungus attack, the wounds made by their beaks serving as points 
of infection and the weakened condition of the plants making 
them less resistant. 

This species has been reported from Maine and California 
and in many intermediate localities. 

Control. — Dr. Patch, (1. c ), states that since the insect winters 




Fig. 234.— The potato aphid. 



Winged summer form. 
Agr. Expt. Sta.) 



(After Webster, Iowa 



in the egg stage on many plants near potato fields, clean culture 
and destruction of weeds in the fall should be a valuable means 
of control. She recommends, also, spraying rose bushes showing 
infestation in the spring with tobacco extract and later, if necessary 
spraying the potatoes with the same material. 



The Apple Leafhopper * 

The apple leafhopper is so named from the fact that it is found 

on apples, especially on yoimg trees in the nursery. To these 

it is quite seriously injurious, being often the most important 

insect pest found in apple nurseries. It is called also the potato 

leafhopper because it attacks potatoes and is even more injurious 

to them than it is to the apple. 

* Empoasca mali LeBaron. Family Jassidoe. See Bulletins 111 and 155, 
Iowa Expt. Sta., E. D. Ball, Journal of Econ. Ent., Vol. 12, No. 2, 1919, 
pp. 149-154. 




Fig. 235.— The apple leaf hopper. (After A. J. Ackerman, Bull. 805, U. S. Dept. 
of Agr.) A, first nymphal stage; B, second stage; C, third stage; D, fourth stage; 
E, fifth stage; F, side view of fifth stage; G, adult;//, front view of head of 
adult; /, eggs in tissue on underside of apple leaf; J, curled condition of ter- 
minal leaves due to attack by the apple leafhopper on apple. 

274 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO POTATOES AND TOMATOES 275 

The leafhopper in question is a small insect of slender form, 
about one-eighth inch in length. The adults have wings and are 
also provided with hind legs fitted for hopping and are quite 
active. The young hop to some extent but are much less active 
than the adults. 

They winter usually as adults but are said also to pass the 
winter in the egg stage, the eggs being laid in the fall on the food 
plant. There are three or four generations. 

Injury to potato is of two kinds; first, the direct injury due 
to the sucking of sap by the leafhopper and second, the blighting 
of the leaves said to be caused by the leafhopper. There is some 
doubt as yet as to just how much the leaf hoppers have to do 
with the transmission of the disease which is called the tip-burn or 
hopper-burn but Dr. Ball, (1. c.) has presented a very strong case 
against the hopper. He maintains that the tipburn is the result 
of a specific poison injected by the hoppers or a specific infection 
carried by them. The evidence may not be quite conclusive 
and is still the subject of investigation, but there are at least strong 
probabilities that the case against the hoppers will be proven. 
The problem is complicated by the fact that there may be more 
than one kind of tipburn or tip blight, as a trouble of very similar 
nature has been observed by the writer in fields where no leaf- 
hoppers were to be found. This burn was generally ascribed 
to weather conditions. 

Control. — Control measures against this pest on potato have 
not been very well worked out, but it is probable that clean culture 
and spraying with nicotine preparations will be found to give 
the best results. 

Tomato Worms 

The large green horn-worms which attack the foliage of the 
tomato are the same as those previously described which attack 
tobacco. Usually they are not so numerous but that they may 
be readily controlled by handpicking, but if necessary the same 
remedial measures may be used as advised for them on tobacco. 

The Tomato Fruitwonn 

The worms which commonly bore into the green and ripening 
tomatoes are the same as the tobacco budworm and the cotton 



E-152 



GARDEN 

CUTWORMS 








Pupa 



The fulljrown 
catworm burrow; 
into the soil and 
changes to a pupa 
from which a moth 
^ emerges in late /■ 
^; summer. 

Themothblay 
ef5's on grasses or 
weed s or on ground .The 
eg?s soon hatch and the 
young worms from them 
feed on the same plants or al- 
; most any late crop till near- 
lyfulI?rown Inlatefallthqr 
bury themselves deep in the 
ground for protection during winter Insprm? 
they emer je and attack most any youn? and 
tender plants they find at the surface. 




Young* catbag^e plant 
destroyed by a cut-worm 

The culprit hiding in ground / "' 
during day near / " 

the plant. ^v<C 



^^ 



Young cabbage ' -- 
plant protected from 
cutworms by poisoned 
bait. The cutworms , 
feed at night and will 
usually hide in the ground 
or under rubbish before 
they die. 




PROTECT YOUR PLANTS WITH 

POISONED BAIT 

TO PREPARE POISONED BAIT: Mix thoroughly }4 pound of wjiite arsenitf with a 
peckof dry bran. Stir a pint of cheap sirup or molasses)nto4-to6 quarts of vvater.Use this 
to make up the poisoned bran into a mash . Let stand several hours to allo-w the bran 
to take up the arsenic. Other powdered arsenicals maybe substituted if amount is doubled 

Late inthe day scatter the mash ^Ain/v alony the rows or around bases of the plants 
to be protected. KEEP CHICKENS AWAY . 

(The addition of chopped lemons ororanges to this baitfor cutworms is sometimes re- 
commended as for grasshoppers and may increase its attractiveness) 



Fig. 306. — Bureau of Entomology Chart, information regarding cutworms 

276 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO POTATOES AND TOMATOES 277 

bollworm (see pages 168 and 221), under which names their habits 
and life histories have been fully described. 

Obviously tomatoes should not be planted on land which has 
been in corn or cotton infested by this insect the previous year, 
unless it has been given thorough winter plowing and harrowing. 

It has seemed to the writer that trap rows of sweet corn might 
be used for protecting tomatoes as they are used with cotton, but 
no experiments seem to have been conducted which show the prac- 




FiG. 237. — Bollworm boring into green tomato. (After Quaintance and 
Brues, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

ticability of the method. As the young caterpillars feed a little on 
the foliage before boring into the fruit, a thorough spraying with 
arsenate of lead, 3 pounds to 50 gallons, will undoubtedly protect 
the tomatoes if applied as soon as the eggs are laid, and with one 
or two later applications at intervals of ten days, the exact time 
depending upon the latitude and season, as indicated by the life 
history (see page 168). 



CHAPTER XV 
INSECTS INJURIOUS TO BEANS AND PEAS * 

The Pea-weevil f 

The common Pea-weevil occurs in almost all parts of the world 
where peas are grown, and is the usual cause of "buggy" peas. It 
was the cause of the abandonment of pea growing in the central 
Atlantic States as early as the middle of the eighteenth century. 
It has usually been regarded as a native of North America, having 




Fig. 238. — ^The pea-weevil (Bruchus pisorum L.): a, adult beetle; 6, larva; 
c, pupa — all enlarged. (From Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

been introduced into Europe. It does but comparatively little 
damage in more northern latitudes and for this reason seedsmen 
secure their seed peas from Canada and northern Michigan and 
Wisconsin, 

The weevil is about one-fifth inch long and about one-half 
that width, being the largest of the pea- and bean-feeding weevils 
in this country. " Its ground color is black, but it is thickly cov- 
ered with brown pubescence, variegated with black and white 
markings as shown in Fig. 238, The sides of the thorax are notched 
or toothed, and the abdomen, which projects beyond the wing- 
covers, is coated with whitish pubescence and marked by two black 
spots. The hind thighs are thickened and each bears two promi- 
nent teeth." 

* See F. H. Chittenden, Insects Injurious to Beans and Peas, Yearbook 
U. S. Dept. Agr. for 1898, p. 233. 

t Bruchus pisorum Linn. Family Bruchidce. 

278 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO BEANS AND PEAS 



279 



Life History. — The winter is passed in the adult stage, the wee- 
vils making their appearance in the fields when the peas are in 
blossom. The eggs are laid singly upon the surface of the pods, 
attached by a sticky fluid which becomes white when dry. The 
egg is about one-twentieth of 



.9' 



an inch long by one-third that 
width, of a yellow color, and 
is shown in Fig. 239. 

Upon hatching, the young 
larva bores through the pod 
and into the seed. In this 
stage the larva has some very 
small false legs and two plates 
and six strong spines on the 
thorax, which aid it in get- 
ting through the pod. Upon 
entering the seed the skin is Fig. 239.— The pea-weevil: a, egg on pod; 




h, cross section of opening of larval mine; 

c, young larva and opening on inside of 
pod by which it has entered — enlarged 

d, d, d, eggs on pod, slightly enlarged; 
f, leg of larva; g, prothoracic spurious 
processes — more enlarged. (After Chit- 
tenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



shed and these legs, plates 
and spines are lost. The 
larva feeds upon the seed, 
growing rapidly. When full 
grown it appears as at 6, 
Fig. 238. It resembles a maggot in general appearance, being white, 
except the small mouth-parts, which are brown; is fleshy, nearly 
cylindrical and strongly wrinkled, with three pairs of very 
short stubby legs. It is about one-fourth an inch long and half 
as broad. Before its final molt the larva eats a round hole in the 
pea, leaving but a thin membrane as a covering. It then lines the 
inside of the pea with a glue-like substance, and within this cell 
transforms to the pupa. 

The pupa is white, showing the notches at the sides of the 
thorax, but otherwise is not dissimilar from many weevil pupae. 
The length of the pupal stage varies from nine to seventeen or 
more days. In more southern latitudes a large part of the beetles 
leave the seed in August^ but in the North they all remain in the 
seed over winter, and are planted with the seed. There is but one 
generation a year and this species does not breed in dry peas. 

Injury. — Dr. James Fletcher has stated that this pest is now 
doing over $1,000,000 d;amage in Ontario alone annually, and that 



280 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

the growing of peas has been abandoned in considerable areas of 
that province. In large peas about one-sixth of the food content 
is destroyed, while in smaller varieties fully one-half. Not only 
this, but in eating canned green peas one frequently devours sev- 
eral small larvae in each mouthful, unawares, as but a small dark 
speck indicates their presence in the green pea. In the dry seed 
the holes made by the larvse can be seen. But 12 to 18 per cent of 
infested seed will produce plants, which are later in developing and 
do not yield as well as those unaffected. 

Enemies. — The Baltimore oriole has been recorded as feeding 
on the grubs by splitting open the pods, and the crow blackbird is 
said to devour many of the beetles in the spring. Practically no 
parasites or predaceous insects are known to prey upon it, so that 
it has every opportunity for doing serious injury. 

Control. — Holding over Seed. — One of the best means of 
destroying the weevils where but a few peas are concerned and cir- 
cumstances will permit, is simply to hold them over for a season, 
stored in a tight sack or box, before planting. As the weevils will 
not breed in the dried peas they die in the sack and are thus caught. 
Peas should always be bagged up and sacks tied immediately after 
threshing. 

Late Planting. — Comparative immunity from injury is claimed 
by some growers for late-planted peas. Dr. F. H. Chittenden is 
inclined to the belief that in some localities, such as Washington, 
D. C, where two crops can be grown in a year, that late planting 
is all that is necessary to secure sound seed stock. 

Treating with Kerosene. — The Canadians have found that 
kerosene may be used to destroy the weevils. Dr. Fletcher states : 
'' A remedy which has been used by many farmers with satisfaction 
is to drench the seed with coal oil, using about a half a gallon to the 
barrel, or five bushels of peas. While applying the coal oil (kero- 
sene) the seed should be placed on the floor, where it can be shoveled 
over constantly to insure the treatment of all the grain." 

Scalding Seed. — " When peas are found to contain live weevils 
at the^time of sowing, these may be destroyed by simply pouring 
them into a pot of scalding water. The water should be drained 
off at once or the seed cooled by turning in cold water." — Fletcher. 

Heat. — Dr. Chittenden states that it has been found that a tem- 
perature of 145° F. will kill the weevils in the seed without injury 
to the germinating property of the seed. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO BEANS AND PEAS 



281 



Fumigation. — This is undoubtedly the best means of destroy- 
ing the weevils, and is now coming into general use. Dr. Fletcher, 
who has made the most thorough studies of practical methods for 
controlling this pest, states: "Fumigation with bisulfide of car- 
bon is a sure remedy. When properly done, either in specially 
constructed buildings known as ' bug-houses ' or in any tight bin, 
every weevil is surely killed if the seed containing them is fumi- 
gated for forty-eight hours with this chemical, using 1 pound by 
weight to every 100 bushels of seed, or, in smaller quantities, 1 
ounce to every 100 pounds. For the treatment of small quantities 
of seed, particularly by farmers, I have found that an ordinary 
coal-oil barrel is very convenient. This will hold about 5 bushels, 
or 300 pounds of seed, which may be treated with 3 ounces of bisul- 
fide of carbon. Care must be taken to close up the top tightly. 
This is best done with a cap made specially for the purpose, but 
fine sacks laid smoothly on the top, over which boards are placed 
with a weight on them, will answer. Fumigation with bisulfide 
of carbon is, I believe, the remedy most to be relied upon in this 
campaign. It is perfectly effective, is now regularly used by the 
large seed merchants, and in future will be much more generally 
used." 

The Common Bean-weevil * 

Throughout the United States the common Bean-weevU is the 




Fig. 240. — The common bean-weevil (Bruchus obtedus Say): a, beetle; b, 
larva; c, pupa — ^all greatly enlarged. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. 
Agr.) 

principal enemy of the bean. The small, white, footless grubs 
feed within the beans, both in the field and in storage, and trans- 
* Bruchus obtectus Say. Family Bruchidce. 



282 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



form to the common brown-gray weevils which infest white beans. 
In the South its attacks are so serious that it is ahnost impossible 
to secure a crop uninfested, so that most of the beans both for 
seed and consumption come from the North. Not until 1870 did 
injury by this insect attract attention in the United States, but 
now it occurs throughout our borders and is practically cosmopol- 
itan in its distribution. It is probably a native of Central or 
South America. 

The adult weevil is about one-eighth of an inch long and is cov- 
ered with a fine 
brown-gray or olive 
pubescence, giving it 
that color, while the 
wing-covers are mot- 
tled as shown in Fig. 
240, a. It may be 
distinguished from 
the pea-weevil by its 
longer thorax and by 
the two small teeth 
next to the large 
O c tooth at the tip of 

Fig. 241. — The bean-weevil; a, side view of beetle; the thighs. 

h, section of bean pod showing slit for deposition Jjife History In 

of egg; c, part of inside of pod showing egg-mass , „ , 
inserted through slit— all enlarged. (After Riley the field the eggs are 
and Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) j^id upon or are in- 

serted in the bean-pod through holes made by the female or such 
openings as are caused by its drying and splitting (Fig. 241, 6, c). 
In shelled beans the eggs are placed loosely among them or in the 
exit holes of the beetles. The young larva hatching from the egg 
has long; slender legs, but with the first molt these are lost and 
when full grown it is a fat grub as shown in Fig. 240, h. The pupal 
stage is passed in an oval cell made by the larva within the bean. 
Experiments have shown that the eggs hatch in from five days in 
the hottest to twenty days in cooler weather; the larval stage 
requires eleven to forty-two days, and the pupal stage five to eigh- 
teen days. Thus the whole life cycle will extend over a period of 
from twenty-one to eighty days, depending upon the season and 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO BEANS AND PEAS 283 

locality. Probably about six generations occur annually in the 
District of Columbia, and a less number farther north. 

" Unlike the pea-weevil, a large number of individuals will 
develop in a bean, as many as twenty-eight having been found 
within a single seed. It will thus be readily seen that the first out- 
door generation or any single indoor generation is capable of 
exhausting seed and completely ruining it for food or planting or 
any other practical purpose, except perhaps as hog feed." 

" The beetles begin to issue from beans in the field in a climate 
like that of the District of Columbia ... as early as October, 
when in the natural course of events the eggs for a new brood 
would be deposited in such pods as had cracked open, so as to 
expose the seeds within." 

" Weevilly " seed should never be planted, as but a small per 
cent of it will germinate and the vitality of that germinating is 
deficient. Professor Popenoe showed in experiments at Manhattan, 
Kan., that only 50 per cent of the infested seed used germinated, 
that only 30 per cent could have grown further, and that even 
these would have produced plants of little vigor or productive- 
ness. (Quotations and facts from Chittenden, I.e.) 

Remedies. — No methods are known of preventing injury in the 
field, and all remedial measures must be applied to the insects in 
the stored seed. As this species breeds in the stored seed, it is use- 
less to hold it over as for the pea-weevil, and the quicker infested 
seed is treated the better. Either heat, or better, fumigation, as 
described for the pea-weevil, should be used. When ready to plant, 
seed should be thrown lightly into water, when that badly infested 
will float and can be separated and destroyed. 

Professor Geo. A. Dean, of the Kansas Experiment Station, 
states that beans can be protected from injury and the weevils 
in them killed, simply by storing them in air-slaked lime. The 
lime is poured over the beans in the container and shaken down 
until the beans are entirely covered. We have tested the method 
and secured perfect results. This is by far the most convenient 
method for handling small quantities of beans and peas, es- 
pecially for those intended for seed. They should be kept in a 
dry place. 



284 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 




Fig. 242. — The cow-pea weevil (Bruchus chi- 
nensis L.): a, adult male; b, egg; c, young 
larva; d, front view of head of same; e, thor- 
acic leg of same; — a, much enlarged; b, e, 
more enlarged. (Alter Chittenden, U. S. 
Dept. Agr.) 



Other Bean- weevils 

The Cow-pea weevil.* — This species may be readily recognized 
by the two large, raised white lobes at the base of the thorax and 

the strongly pectinate 
antennae of the male as 
shown in Fig. 242, a. The 
cow-pea is the favorite 
food-plant of this and the 
following species, but peas 
and various sorts of beans 
are also attacked. This 
species is a southern form, 
but seems to be spreading, 
incident to the more wide- 
spread growth of the cow- 
pea. Like the common 
bean-weevil it is practically cosmopolitan in its distribution, but 
is most injurious in tropical regions. The hfe history and remedial 
measures are practically the same as for the common bean-weevil. 
The Four-Spotted Bean-weevil. — fThe wing covers of this species 
are covered with gray -t r 

and white pubescence "~" 

and four darker spots 
from which the spe- 
cies is named. It is 
more slender than the 
preceding species and 
the antennae of the 
male are not pecti- 
nate. The markings , „ , , ., , ., 

., . , , Fig. 243. — The four-spotted bean-weevil: a, beetle; 

are quite variable, 6, larva; c, pupa— all enlarged. (After Chit- 
but the most com- tenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 
mon form is that shown in Fig. 244. This is an exotic species oc- 
curring from Mexico to Brazil and in i^he Mediterranean countries. 
In 1885 it was found at the Atlanta Cotton Exposition in black- 
eyed beans from Texas, and has since become acclimated as far 
north as Iowa. It seems to breed more readily in fresh and slightly 

* Bruchus chinensis Linn. 

f Bruchus qvxidrimaculatus Fab. 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO BEANS AND PEAS 



285 



moist seed and, like the preceding species, its work in stored beans 
seems to cause decomposition and a consequent rise of temperature. 
The life history and remedial measures are similar to those of the 
bean-weevil. 

The European Bean- 
weevil* was imported 
into New York and 
New Jersey in 1870. at 
the Colmnbian Ex- 
position at Chicago in 
1893, and has been ob- 
served at College Sta- 
tion, Texas, but does 
not seem to have be- 
come established in 
this country. It close- 
ly resembles the pea- 
weevil in appearance 
and life history. 




Fig. 244. — The four-spotted bean-weevil : a, cow- 
pea, showing holes made by weevils in their 
escape from seed, also eggs deposited on surface; 
h, egg; c, young larva; d, head of same; e, proth- 
oracic leg;/, spine above spiracle of first abdom- 
inal segment — a, twice natural size; h, f, greatly 
enlarged. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



The Bean Leaf-beetle f 

Small yellowish or reddish beetles, marked with black, as 
shown in Fig. 245, and from one-seventh to one-fifth inch 
long, are often found eating the foliage of beans, and are commonly 
known as Bean Leaf-beetles. The species occurs throughout the 
United States east of the Rockies, but has been chiefly injurious 
in the Middle and Southern States. Besides beans, the beetles 
feed upon cow-peas and various native plants such as beggar- 
weed or tickseed, tick trefoil (Meibomia), bush-clover (Lespedeza), 
and hog-peanut (i^aZca to). They usually become quite numerous 
before they are observed, for during most of the day they rest or 
feed on the under sides of the leaves. They are sluggish and 
seldom fly, and when disturbed often drop to the ground, though 
they soon crawl back to the plant. Large round holes are eaten 
in the foliage until finally nothing but the veins and midrib of a 

* Bruchus rufimanus Boh. 

t Ceratoma trifurcata Forst. Family Chrysomelida;. 



286 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



leaf is left, the manner of defoliation being quite characteristic 
of this species. Low-growing and dwarf varieties are worse injured, 
as pole beans put out new leaves after the injury has stopped, 
Life History. — The adult beetles hibernate in or near the bean, 
fields and emerge from April to June according to the latitude. 
Minute orange-colored eggs are laid near the stem of the plant- 
just below the surface of the soil, in clusters of six to ten or more, 

and hatch in from 
five to eight days. 
The young larvae feed 
upon the stem and 
roots, becoming full 
grown in six or seVen 
weeks. When grown 
the larva is about 
three-tenths an inch 
long, about one-eight 
as wide, cylindrical, 
milk-white in color, 
with dark head and 
anal segment, a s 
Fig. 245.— The bean leaf-beetle (Ceratoma irifurcata shown enlarged six 
Forst.): a, adult beetle; h, pupa; c, larva; d, side times in Fie 245 
view anal segment of larva; e, leg of same; /, egg . * 

— a, b, c, enlarged about six times; d, e, f, more The pupa (Fig. 245, 
enlarged. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) Jj) is Dure white and 

from it the beetle emerges in five to eight days. Thus, in the Dis- 
trict of Columbia, the whole life cycle requires six to nine weeks, 
depending upon heat and moisture. In the North there is prob- 
ably but one generation a year; in Maryland and Virginia one 
generation develops in July and another in September; while in 
the Gulf States there are probably three generations, as beetles 
are numerous in October. 

Remedies. — Spraying with arsenical poisons as for the bean 
ladybird is the most effectual means of controlHng the pest when 
abundant, but they should be applied early to avoid the poison 
on beans to be eaten green. Owing to the sluggishness of the 
beetles they may be handpicked in small gardens. Clean culture 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO BEANS AND PEAS 



287 



and careful weeding of native food-plants such as tick-trefoil and 
bush-clover, near cultivated crops are 
most important. 



The Bean Ladybird * 

The Bean Ladybird is the most 
serious enemy of beans in Colorado, 
New Mexico, Arizona, and Western 
Kansas, whence it migrated from 
Mexico. It is an interesting insect in 
that only two other native species of 
this family of beetles (Coccinellidce) feed 
upon vegetation, the normal food of the 
family being plant-lice, scale insects, and 
soft-bodied larvae. 

Professor C. P. Gillettef describes it as 
follows : 

" The beetle (Fig. 246, A) is oval in 
outline, nearly one-third an inch in 
length by one-fifth an inch in breadth, 
of a light yellow to a yellowish-brown 
color and has eight small black spots on 
each wing-cover. The mature larva is 
about the same length as the beetle, is 
of hght yellow color and is covered with 
stout branched spines that are black at 
their tips, a larva being shown at C, 
Fig. 246. The larva when fully grown 
fastens the posterior end of its body to 
the under side of a leaf and then in a 
few days sheds its outer skin containing 
the spines and changes to the pupa state 
(Fig. 246, B). From these pupae the Fig 




beetles appear a few days later. They 
live over winter, and appear about as 
soon as the beans are up in the garden or 
field and begin to feed upon the leaves, 



246.— The bean lady- 



bird {EpilacJma varivestis 
Mills.): a, adult beetle; 
h, pupa; c, larva; d, bean 
pod showing injury. (After 
Gillette, Colo. Agr. Exp. 
Sta.) 



* Epilachna varivestis Muls. Family Coccinellidce. 
t Bulletin 19, Colo. Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 25. 



288 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

on the under side of which they deposit their j'^ellowish-brown 
eggs in large clusters after the manner of the 'Colorado potato 
beetle.' The spiny little larvae that hatch from these eggs 
remain on the under side of the leaves, which they skeletonize in 
feeding. The beetles eat through the veins of the leaves and do 
not skeletonize them. They also eat into and destroy the green 
pods as shown in Fig. 246, D. There is also one brood of this 
insect in a season. 

Control. — Paris green dusted upon the plants diluted with 
100 parts of air-slaked lime or flour is recommended, or it may be 
applied with Bordeaux mixture, 1 pound to 200 gallons, but much 
care must be used not to burn the foliage, which seems to be very 
susceptible to the arsenic. Arsenate of lead applied as a dust, 
with or without a carrier, or as a spray at from three to five pounds 
paste to 100 gallons of water is much more safe and is now more 
generally used for that reason. In spraying, an underspray 
nozzle must be used to reach under the leaves. Dilute kerosene 
emulsion will kill the larvae, but must also be used with caution 
to avoid injury to the plant. Whaleoil soap might be as effective 
and less injurious to the plant. Upon small gardens handpicking 
of the adult beetles as soon as they appear in the spring will prob- 
ably be the surest means of combating them. Cleaning up the 
old patch and plowing it under will doubtless aid in preventing 
successful hibernation. 

Blister-beetles 

Several species of elongate, grayish, black or bright green 
blister-beetles feed in large numbers upon bean foliage. The 
general life history, habits, and remedies have been already 
described. (See pages 104^ 270.) 

The Ash-gray Blister-beetle.* — This is the most common species 
affecting beans in the East and westward to Kansas and Nebraska. 
The beetle is a uniform ash-gray color and of the form shown in 
Fig. 247. The beetles attack this and other legumes in immense 
swarms, riddling the foliage in a few days if not checked, and 
appear from the middle of June to the middle of July. 

NuttalVs Blister-beetle. ^ — This species occurs from the Mis- 
issippi west to the Rockies, through the region of the Missouri 

* Macrobasis unicolor Kby. 
t Cantharis nuttalli Say. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO BEANS AND PEAS 



289 



Valley, and north to the Northwest Territories, where it seems to 
be particularly destructive to beans, though affecting many 
garden vegetables. The life history is not known, but is probably 
similar to that of other species, as the beetles appear about July 1st 
in years following severe outbreaks of grasshoppers. Owing to 
the rapidity with which this species works and the large numbers, 





Fig. 247. — The ash-gray bHster-beetle Fig. 248. — NuttaU's blister-beetle 

(Macrobasis unicolor Kby.) : female (Cantharis nuttalli Say.) : female 

beetle at right, twice natural size; beetle, enlarged one-third. (After 

male antenna at left, greatly en- Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 
larged. (After Chittenden, U. S. 
Dept. Agr.) 

poisons will be of little avail and mechanical measures must be 
employed for their destruction. 
Control. — See page 271. 

The Bean-aphis * 

" Crowded together in clusters upon the top of the stalks 
and under side of the leaves of the English bean, the poppy, 
dahlia, and several other plants, may be found a small black plant- 
louse with pale shanks, and a row of mealy white spots along each 
side of the back." — Fitch. 

This is an old European pest of the bean, where it is known 
the black dolphin, collier, and black fly, and has sometimes 
caused the entire destruction of a crop. In the United States 
« it probably occurs wherever beans are grown, having been reported 
from New York, Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota and Colorado. The 
species is probably best known as affecting various species of 

* Aphis rumicis Linn. Family Aphididoe. 



290 INSECT PESTS OF FABM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

dock, upon the leaves of which it occurs commonly in large num- 
bers. Shepherd's purse, pigweed, the " burning bush "(Euony- 
mus europoeus and atropurpurus) , and the snowball bush are also 
commonly infested. 

Life History. — The life history was first described most inter- 
estingly by Dr. Fitch in his 13th Report* and has since been 
confirmed by Osborne and Sirrine.f The eggs are laid in the fall 
around the buds of the wahoo or " burning bush " (Euonymus 
atropurpurus), and possibly upon the snowball. The first gen- 
eration or two multiply upon these plants and then spread to 
common weeds such as shepherd's purse, pigweed, dock, etc., 
during the latter part of May and early June, from which they 
again migrate to beans when that crop is available. During 
the summer the aphids multiply upon these food-plants vivipar- 
ously, i. e., by giving birth to live young, all being females, as is the 
rule with aphids; but about the middle of September, in Iowa, 
winged males and females migrate back to the wahoo. 

Description. — The wingless females are about one-tenth an 
inch long, pear-shaped, sooty black, frequently marked with 
pruinose whitish dots along each side of the back. The antennae 
are about half the length of the body, yellowish-white, except 
toward the tips and the two basal segments, which are black. 
Honey tubes short, scarcely half as long as from their bases to 
tip of abdomen. Tail half as long as the honey tubes. 

The winged females are glossy-black, one-twelfth an inch 
long to the tip of the abdomen and twice that length to the tip 
of the closed wings. The abdomen lacks the white spots of the 
wingless females and pupae. Legs are black, except shanks, 
which are whitish with dark tips. Otherwise the winged fwrn 
resembles quite closely the wingless form. The black color 
and white spots on the abdomen of the wingless females and 
pupae will readily distinguish the species from other aphids on 
beans. 

Control. — Spraying with dilute kerosene emulsion has proven 
the best means of combating the pest according to Osborn and 
Sirrine, diluting the stock solution fifteen times, or so the spray- 
ing mixture will contain about 5 per cent of kerosene. It seems 

* Fitch, 13th Report on the Noxious, Beneficial and other Insects of the 
State of New York, Trans. N. Y. State Agr. Soc, 1869, p. 495. 

t Osborn and Sirrine, Bulletin 23, Iowa Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 901, 1894. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO BEANS AND PEAS 



291 



that the foliage of the bean is quite susceptible to injury from any 
free kerosene, and probably whaleoil soap 1 pound to 5 or 6 gal- 
lons, would prove safer and equally efficient. As it is frequently 
necessary to spray beans with Bordeaux mixture or other fun- 
gicides for fungous diseases, the whaleoil soap might be readily 
sprayed at the same time. 

Of late years tobacco extracts have largely supplanted the oil 
and soap emulsions and it is probably that they will be more 
satisfactory in most places as a treatment for this insect. 



The Seed-com Maggot * 

This insect has been termed the Seed-corn Maggot on account 
of its frequent injuries to early seed-corn, but in recent years it 
has often seriously injured the seeds of beans and peas, on account 
of which it has been termed the " bean-fly," while cabbage, 




Fig. 249. — Seed-corn maggot {Pegomyia fusciceps) : a, male fly, dorsal view; 
b, female, lateral view; c, head of female from above; d, larva, from side; 
e, anal segment of larva; /, anal spiracles; g, cephalic spiracles; h, pupa- 
rium — all much enlarged. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

turnip, radish, onions, beets and seed potatoes are among its 
other food-plants. 

The species is of European origin, and was first noted in this 
country by Dr. Asa Fitch, in 1856. Since then it has become 
distributed throughout the United States from Minnesota to 
Texas and eastward. 

* Pegomyia fusciceps Zett. Family Anthomyiidce. 



292 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

The adult flies closely resemble the root-maggots affecting 
the cabbage and onion and are about one-fifth an inch long. 
The male may be distinguished from nearly related species by a 
row of nearly equal, short bristles on the inner side of the hind 
tibiae or shanks. 

The life history of the species has not been carefully observed, 
but is probably shnilar to that of other root-maggots. The 
flies deposit their eggs either upon the young seedling just as it 
appears above ground, or probably more often on the seed itself. 
Injury is called to attention by the seed failing to germinate, 
which, when examined, is found to contain one or more small 
white maggots, which have destroyed the germ or the young 
seedling. Thus in 1895, large areas of beans were destroyed in 
Minnesota.* 

The maggots are about one-fourth an inch long, slightly 
smaller than the onion-maggot, from which they may be dis- 
tinguished by the tubercles of the anal segment. 

Control. — It has been noted that injury often occurs where 
stable manure has been turned under, and it may be possible 
that the flies are attracted to it to oviposit or that they are 
attracted by decaying seed. In preventing attacks of root- 
maggots it would seem advisable to apply stable manure the 
previous fall so that it may become well rotted and incorporated 
into the soil before seeding. Rolling the seed-bed after planting 
might also be of value in preventing the access of the flies to the 
seed. 

Applications of commercial fertilizers which will insure a 

quick growth of the seedling are advisable. The use of carbolic acid 

emulsion and sand and kerosene upon the surface of the seed-bed 

after planting and as the seedlings are appearing, as advised 

for the cabbage root-maggot, will also be of value. Inasmuch 

as the injury is sporadic and affects the seed before it can be 

readily detected, reliance must be placed chiefly upon general 

cultural methods as outlined above and others which a better 

knowledge of the life history of the pest will undoubtedly suggest. 

* See Lugger, Bulletin 43, Minn. Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 207 (1st Rept. Minn. 
State Entomologist). See Circular 63, and Bulletin 33, p. 84, Bureau of 
Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO BEANS AND PEAS 



293 



The Pea-aphis * 

Large green plant-lice often become so abundant on the foliage 
and pods of garden-peas as to kill the plants. Prior to 1899 the 
pea-aphis had not been a serious pest in this country, but during 
that and the following season it caused a loss of several million 
dollars to pea-growers on the Atlantic coast from North Carolina to 
Nova Scotia and as far west as Wisconsin, especially where peas 
were extensively grown 
for canning. During 
1901 injury was by no 
means as serious, and has 
materially decreased 
since then, though spo- 
radic injury occurs 
almost every year in some 
section. General injury 
occurs only periodically 
for reasons mentioned be- 
low. The pest seems to 
occur throughout the 
States east of the 100th 
meridian and possibly 
farther west. It is an old 
enemy of peas in Eng- 
land, where it destroyed 
the crop as long ago as 
1810, and it has long been 
known in Europe as an 
enemy of peas, clovers, 
vetches and related 
plants. 




Fig. 250. — The pea-aphis (Macrosiphum pisi 
Kalt.): winged and wingless viviparous fe- 
males and young — enlarged. 



Both wingless and winged aphids occur together throughout 
the season, the latter predominating whenever food becomes scarce. 
The winged forms are from one-eighth to one-seventh of an inch 
long, with wings expanding two-fifths of an inch. The body is a 

* Macrosiphum pisi Kalt. Family Aphididce. See Chittenden, Circular 
43, Bureau of Ent., U. S. Dept. Agr.; Sanderson, Bulletin 49, Del. Agr. Exp. 
Sta.; Folsom, Bulletin 134, 111. Agr. Exp. Sta. 



294 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



pea-green color, light brownish between the wings and on the head, 
the eyes are red, and the legs, antennae and honey tubes are yellow- 
ish, tipped with black. The wingless females are similar in size and 
color, but are much broader across the abdomen, and the honey 
tubes are somewhat larger. The mouth-parts of the pea-aphis are 
of the sucking type, and it secures its food by puncturing and suck- 
ing up the juices of the plant. The plant is thus injured by the 
large number of aphids sucking out its juices and causing it to 
wilt and die. 

Life History. — The aphids pass the winter on clover and 
vetches, and often increase upon clover so as to do it serious 

injury. Where peas are 
available the winged 
females usually migrate 
to them about the time 
peas are 6 or 8 inches 
high, and give birth to 
live young, which de- 
velop into wingless vivi- 
parous females. These 
females, as do those of 
subsequent broods 
throughout the summer, 
give birth to live young, 
and reproduction goes 
on at a rapid rate. Ac- 
cording to the observa- 
tions of Mr. R. L. Web- 
ster, in central Illinois, 
an aphid becomes 
grown about eleven 
days after it is born, 
lives about twenty-five days and gives birth to about fifty young, 
though under favorable conditions over one hundred are frequent- 
ly born. Sixteen generations have been observed from March 23d 
to October 4th. Winged aphids develop as often as the food- 
plant becomes overcrowded and it is necessary to migrate to 
avoid starvation. 



"\"" 




- 


> 




\ 




\\ 




» 




\ 






t 






% 




k 




■ 




\ 


f 




i 


A-. . 


\ 




Li 


, 


■ 


iM^ 


^^^ 


1 


■ 



Fig. 251. — The pea-aphids on stems of red clov' 
er — natural size. (After Folsom.) 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO BEANS AND PEAS 295 

By midsummer, with the harvesting of the peas, most of the 
aphids upon them have been destroyed by predaceous and para- 
sitic insects and disease, and they are not observed during late sum- 
mer unless they have been subsisting on clover throughout the 
season, when they sometimes destroy the crop in August, as has 
been observed in Illinois. In early fall they often become com- 
mon again on late garden peas, and late in October they migrate 
to clover. Fewer young are born as the weather gets colder in 
the fall, and the aphids never become numerous enough to do any 
injury at that season. Late in October and early November — in 
the Middle States — as the aphids are migrating to clover, winged 
males appear, and some of the wingless females developing on 
clover produce eggs. The winged males are similar in size and color 
to the migratory females, though slightly darker, and have three or 
four dark spots along the sides of the abdomen and a deep brown 
dash on either side of the back of each abdominal segment. The 
oval eggs are about one-fiftieth inch long, jet black, and are 
deposited on the lower leaves or stems of clover, and hatch as it 
commences to grow in the spring. In central Illinois they were 
observed to hatch March 23d, and the young became full grown 
and commenced reproduction on April 5th, living until May 12th. 
In southern Maryland and farther south many of the viviparous 
females live over winter on the clover and commence to reproduce 
again in the spring, no eggs having been observed in that latitude, 
but in central Illinois and northward, the females are probably 
entirely destroyed by the cold and only the eggs survive. 

Natural Enemies. — From 5 to 10 per cent of the aphids are 
normally destroyed by little wasp-like flies of the genus Aphidius 
whose larvae live within the aphids. A number of the more com- 
mon ladybird-beetles,* syrphus-flies,t and lace-winged flies, J 
which commonly prey upon aphids, destroy large numbers of the 
pests, but their work comes so late in the season that the peas are 
seriously injured long before the aphids are checked by them, 
though they might prevent a reappearance the next year. 

The most important enemy of the pea-aphis is a fungous dis- 
ease (Empusa aphidis) which is undoubtedly the principal factor 
in its natural control. The most probable explanation of the 

* Family Coccinellidce. 

t Family SyrphidcB. 

X Family Chrysopidoe. Concerning these predaceous insects, see Chap. I. 



296 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

remarkable outbreak of the pea-aphis in 1899 and 1900 seems to be 
that, due to two exceptional!}^ dry springs, the fungus was unable 
to develop, as it propagates best in damp weather, and the aphids 
increased unchecked. Though occasional individual aphids were 
found killed by the fungus early in the season, not until June 11, 
1900, were diseased aphids found in any quantity, but after that 
so swiftly did the disease destroy them that a week later but few 
aphids were to be found and almost all were diseased. Probably 
this fungus usually destroys the aphids on clover before they have 
become excessively numerous or have migrated to peas. 

Control. — Inasmuch as the aphids spread from peas to clover, 
the latter crop should not be planted near peas when avoidable. 
In the spring the aphids should be carefully observed on the 
clover and if they become excessively abundant, the only way to 
prevent their migration to peas is to plow under the clover deeply 
and roll the field. 

Highly fertilized land in which the moisture is retained by fre- 
quent cultivation very often enables a crop to mature in spite of 
moderate injury. Peas sown broadcast or planted in 8-inch 
drills have been much more seriously injured than those planted 
in rows 18 to 30 inches apart and cultivated, and those planted 
close together afford no opportunity for brushing or cultivating 
as described below. 

Early varieties of peas have practically escaped injury where 
late varieties have been wholly destroyed, so that it is obvious that 
only the earliest varieties should be grown where injury is 
anticipated. 

Early in 1900 Professor W. G. Johnson found that when peas 
were planted in rows that the aphids could be readily knocked from 
the vines by means of brushing with a branch, and that by follow- 
ing the brushes with cultivators, the aphids would be covered with 
earth and destroyed, either by suffocation or by the heat of the 
soil. Where the air temperature is 95° F. the soil will be nearly 
120°, and aphids brushed onto it will be actually roasted to death 
in a few minutes. The cultivation should not be repeated for 
about three days, as it requires about that time for the destruction 
of the insects covered with earth, if it is not hot enough to kill 
them at once. By this method large areas of peas have been saved 
fiom destruction. 



? 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO BEANS AND PEAS 



297 



Though the above methods will destroy quantities of the 
aphids and thus prevent the destruction of the crop, they do not 
dislodge the young aphids in the terminals, and therefore cannot 
be reKed upon to prevent all injury. Practical field tests have 
shown that this may be done by spraying with whale-oil soap, 1 
pound to 6 gallons of water. In small gardens this may be applied 
by means of bucket or knapsack pumps, and on small acreages 
with a barrel sprayer with a row-spraying attachment having noz- 
zles arranged so that the vines will be thoroughly covered from 
each side. The spray must be applied with considerable pressure 
so as to force it into the terminals. Here again nicotine compounds 
have largely displaced the soap and oil sprays, although soaps 
are largely used in connection with the nicotine. Mr. L. M. 
Smith recommends the use of the following formula 

" Black-leaf 40" 10 ounces 

Whale-oil soap 14 pounds 

Water 50 gallons 

He also recommends that the spraying be done on a bright 
clear day so as to avoid injury to the vines from the spray material. * 

The Pea-moth f 

The Pea-moth is an old pest in Europe, whence it was imported 
into Canada, where it has frequently done considerable mischief. 
It is known to occur in the 
large pea-growing sections of |^^ 
New Brunswick, Nova Scotia ^^^^^^^M^^^ZJ^^'^^J 
and Ontario, where it first at- ^ 

tracted attention near Toronto ^'^^^ M ^^ 

in 1893, and was found in the 
pea growing section of Michigan j^-xf ^ ' r^A^v' 

in 1908. The wings of the adult W^ ^^SSL^^iT ^ 
moth expand about one-half -^^^^^^^^^^"^^^^m^ 

an inch, the fore-wings being -r^^^ cy-^, rp, „ „„„ _„,, /r, 

' * ° riG. J,ol. — ine pea-moth {kemasia 

"dark, fuscous or dusky, tinged nigricana Steph.): moth above, 

with darker brown and mottled IS.™ JtnS ChitUd"" 
with white," the hind-wings U. S. Dept. Agr.) 
being a uniform fuscous with a rather long inner fringe of hairs, 
as shown in Fig. 252. 

The females may be found flying around pea-blossoms soon 

* L. M. Smith, Virginia Truck Expt. Sta., Bulletin for October, 1914. 

t Semasia nigricana Steph. Family Tortricidce. 




298 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

after sunset, and deposit one to three eggs on young pods. The 
caterpillar hatches in about fourteen days, according to European 
observations, and attacks the forming seed. Affected pods usu- 
ally ripen early. The larva is whitish-yellow with a pale brown head 
and thoracic plate, and about one-half an inch long when full 
grown. With the opening of the pod the larva crawls out and 
enters the earth where it spins a very thin silken cocoon. The 
length of the pupal stage and the method of hibernation do not 
seem to be well established. Very early and very late varieties 
are but little injured. 

Remedies. — This suggests one of the best means of handling 
this pest to be the growing of early varieties, such as Alaska, 
American Wonder, Gregory's Surprise, Nott's Excelsior, and 
McLean's Little Gem. If the crop is known to be infested, clean 
up the vines and burn them as soon as it is picked. Spraying 
with arsenate of lead will doubtless aid in the control wherp in- 
festation is serious. 



CHAPTER XVI 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO BEETS AND SPINACH * 

The Beet-aphis f 

This species was first described by Mr. W. R. Doane in 1900 
and seems thus far to have been found only in Washington and 
Oregon. " Attention was first called to this pest," he says,t " in 
1896, when it was found that a field of two or three acres of beets 
was generally infested, a strip of twenty-five to a hundred yards 
being so badly injured that the beets were nearly all soft and 
spongy, and the plants much smaller than the average. 

" It has been even more destructive in Oregon than in Wash- 
ington, at least a thousand tons of beets having been destroyed by 
it in one year in a single valley devoted largely to beet-culture. 
Like very many other 
beet-insects, this species 
infests also several wild 
or useless plants. 

" The smaller root- 
lets of the beet are first 
attacked by this aphis, 
and if it occurs in con- 
siderable numbers these 
are soon all destroyed, 
and the leaves thereupon 
soon wither, and the 
whole beet shrivels and 
becomes spongy. This 
wilting of the leaves will 




Fig. 253. — The beet-aphis (Pemphigus betce 
Doane) : a, winged female ; b, wingless fe- 
male; c, antenna of winged female. (After 
Doane.) 



frequently, in fact, be the first thing to attract the attention of the 
beet-grower. The actual injury to the crop will, of course, depend 

* See Forbes and Hart, Bulletin 60, 111. Agr. Exp. Sta., and F. H. Chitten- 
den, Bulletin 43, n. s., Div. Ent., U. S. Dept. Agr. 
t Pemphigus betce Doane. Family Aphididoe. 
i Bulletin No. 42, Wash. Agr. Exp. Sta. 299 



300 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

largely upon the time when the attack of the aphis is made. If the 
plants are small they may be readily destroyed, while if they are 
practically full grown the loss of the small rootlets will not 
materially affect them. 

" No sexual generation of this aphis has as yet been discovered 
and no eggs have been seen, viviparous reproduction continuing 
throughout the year except when the cold of the winter tempo- 
rarily suspends the physiological activities of the species. The 
winged females, appearing from time to time during the summer 
and fall, serve to distribute the species generally, new colonies 
being started wherever these females find lodgment and food. In 
districts liable to injury by this insect it seems inadvisable that 
beets should be the first crop on new land, or that ground should 

s^ be continued in beets or in any other 

y Nv root-crop after the pest had made its 

/\\ \ appearance in the field." 

>^^y^ ' [) Another plant-louse, called the beet 

f^'^^r^xr^^^^.^...^^ root-aphis*, proved injurious to sugar- 

J ^ H^^^ ^^®*^ ^^ Colorado in 1903. They were 

S ^ found " quite generally distributed in 

^.^ ^.^^_^„^^^. the beet-fields in the vicinity of 

^^^^ \^^\^^ Rockyford and attacking the roots of 

^ ^ "" many weeds." What seemed to be this 

Fig. 254.-Beet root-aphis ^P^cies was very abundant upon the 
{Tijchea brevicornis Hart) : roots of the common garden purslane, to 
rial'gre'SlrSarg'S: which it was very injurious. Near Fort 
(After Garman.) Collins a badly infested field of sugar- 

beets was also seriously damaged. 

No practical means for controlling these pests seems to have 
been recorded, so that in case of injury the entomologist of the 
State should be consulted. 

White Grubs, Wire worms, and Cutworms 

Fortunately for the sugar-beet farmer the worst insect ene- 
mies of that plant feed upon the tops, and very rarely do we hear 
of serious damage being done the roots. In the East most of the 
damage to the roots is done by those familiar old farm-thieves, the 
white grub, the cutworm and the wireworm. As a general rule 

* Tychea brevicornis Hart. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO BEETS AND SPINACH 



301 



they will be found to be worse on lands previously in sod, which 
should therefore be avoided when known to be badly infested with 
either of these insects, as both are difficult to fight after they have 
once commenced doing noticeable injury. 

The life histories and means of control for these pests will be 
found discussed in Chapter VII. 

The Sugar-beet Webworm * 

The sugar-beet webworm is very similar to the garden web- 
worm, and is so named because it has developed as a serious 




Fig. 255. — The sugar-beet webworm [Loxosfege sticticalis Linn.): 1, moth; 
2, eggs; 3, 4, larvae; 5, pupa; 6, winter tube of larva, opened at a to 
show pupa — 1, 3, 4, 5, enlarged. (After Gillette, Colo. Agr. Exp. Sta.) 

pest of the sugar-beet in Kansas, Nebraska, and Colorado. It 

has been noted as injuring tansy in Michigan, and feeds on 

* Loxostege sticticalis Linn. Family Pyraustidm. See C. P. Gillette, 
Bulletin 98, Colo. Agr. Exp. Sta., and references there given. 



302 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

cabbage, onions, and alfalfa, as well as pigweed (Chenopodium 
album) and careless weed (Amaranthus) and will probably feed 
on many other crops. It is a native of western and central 
Europe, and northern Asia, and was evidently introduced on the 
Pacific Coast, as it was noted in Utah in 1869. 

The moth is larger than the garden webworm, having a wing 
expanse of an inch, and is a purplish-brown color with darker 
and paler bands as shown in Fig. 255. The full-grown larva is 
about an inch long, of a dark color with a white stripe down the 
back and one along either side, and marked with numerous 
black and white tubercles as illustrated. 

Life History. — The larvae hibernate over winter an inch or 
two below the surface of the soil in long silken tubes. In spring 
they pupate in these tubes and the moths emerge about the middle 
of May. The eggs are laid on the foliage either singly or in clus- 
ters of from three to ten, one overlapping another. The egg 
is broadly oval, one twenty-fifth inch long, and of a pale green 
color. The first generation of caterpillars feed on pigweed 
and alfalfa in Colorado during June. A second generation of 
larva; occurs about the middle of July and sometimes injures 
beets, but the third generation about the middle of August is 
the one most injurious in Colorado. Most of these larvae hibernate 
over winter, but there is a partial fourth generation in Colorado. 
The larvae defoliate the plants, and cover them with a web the 
same as the native garden webworm, with which the life history 
seems to be practically identical. 

Control. — The same means of control as for the garden web- 
worm are advised. 

The Beet Army Worm * 

" This caterpillar, which replaces the fall army worm (L. 
frugiperda — see Chapter VII) in the Western States, differs from 
it by its more decidedly mottled ground-color, by a row of white 
dots at the lower margin of the lateral dark band, and by the 
yellower color of the light stripes. It is an interesting fact that 
while the preceding species was doing serious, unusual, and widely 
extended injury in the Eastern and Southern States (1899,) 
the present one was similarly abundant in Colorado, where, 

* Laphygrna exigua Hubn. Family Noctuidce. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO BEETS AND SPINACH 



303 



besides destroying many kinds of weeds and grasses, it com- 
pletely defoliated thousands of acres of sugar beets. In some 
cases where the foliage of the beet did not furnish it sufficient 
food, the root was attacked and the upper surface was com- 
pletely gnawed away. 
Late plantings, of 
course, suffered most 
severely, especially 
when surrounded by 
newly broken 
ground. The weeds 
most generally eaten 
were pigweed, salt- 
weed, wild sunflower, 
and Cleome. Potato, 
pea, and apple leaves 
were also devoured. 
These injuries oc- 
curred about the 
middle of August, at 
which time the larvae 
and pupae were abun- 




FiG. 256. — The beet army worm (Laphygma exigua 
Hubn.): a, moth; h, larva, side view ; c, larva, 
back view; d, head of larva; e, egg from above; /, 
egg from side — all enlarged. (After Chittenden, 
U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



dant, and a few moths laden with eggs were noticed." 

This species evidently hibernates as a moth, and at least 
two broods of larvae may be looked for each year, the first about 
June and the second in August. The species has been reported 
thus far from Colorado and California, but it doubtless has a 
more extended range in the mountain regions of the far West. 

" Professor Gillette's field-experiments showed that it could be 
destroyed by dusting or spraying arsenical poisons on the leaves." 

Flea-beetles 

Several species of flea-beetles, chiefly Systena toeniaia, Systena 
hudsonias, Disonycha triangularis, and Phyllotreta vittaia, often 
do considerable injury by gnawing small holes in the upper and 
lower surfaces of the leaves of beets, giving them an appearance as 
if affected by leaf-spot, or puncturing them full of small holes, and 
thus stunting the growth of the plants. 



304 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



The Spinach Flea-beetle * 

Of the many species of flea-beetles injurious to sugar-beets, 
the spinach flea-beetle is one of the largest and most destructive. 
The beetle is nearly one-quarter inch long, shining black, with 
a greenish or bluish lustre. The prothorax and abdomen are 
red or reddish yellow, and the legs and antennae are pale yellowish. 
It occurs from New England to Montana and southward to the 
Gulf, and is one of the most common pests of beets and spinach, 
while its native food plants are chickweed and lambsquarter. 

Life History. — The beetles hibernate over winter and emerge 
in the spring during April and May. The buff or orange eggs are 

laid on end in small 
masses, " at the bases 
of the plants infested, 
on bits of leaf or earth, 
or even within the 
earth " according to 
Forbes. The eggs 
hatch from sometime 
in April to early July, 
according to locality. 
The larvae usually feed 
on the under side of 
the leaf, keeping to- 
gether in families 

which migrate from 
Fig 257. — The spinach flea-beetle (Disonycha jgg^f j-q jgg^i' ^ Jj j J g 
xanthomelcena Dalm.) : a, beetle; b, egg mass; bb, 

sculpture of egg; c, larva; c/, pupa; e, young young, and drop to the 
larva; /, abdominal segment of sam^a c d ground — as do the 
five times natural size; b, more enlarged; bo, ° 

f, highly magnified. (After Chittenden, U. S. beetles — W hen d 1 S- 
Dept. Agr.) turbed. While young 

they merely gnaw the under surface of the leaf, but later they eat 
through and riddle it with round holes, in which they are aided 
by the beetles. The full-grown larva is about one-quarter inch 
long, of a dull gray color, except on red and purple beets, on 
which it assumes the color of the plant attacked, is of a cylin- 

* Disonycha xanthomeloena Dalm. Family Chrysomelidoe. See F. H. Chit- 
tenden, Bulletin 43, Bureau of Ent., U. S. Dept. Agr., p. 14; S. A. Forbes, 
21st Rept. State Ent. of 111., p. 116. 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO BEETS AND SPINACH 305 

drical form, and the segments are strongly marked by rows of 
raised tubercles, each of which bears a black hair at the tip. The 
larvae become grown in late June and early July in Illinois, and 
enter the earth to pupate, the beetles of the next generation 
emerging about a month after the eggs were deposited. The beetles 
of the second generation lay their eggs from July to September 
and the beetles mature before winter sets in. In the District 
of Columbia, Chittenden observes that the first generation is more 
abundant on chick-weed and the second is injurious to beets and 
spinach. 

Control. — Thoroughly dusting or spraying the plants with 
arsenate of lead will readily destroy the larvae and probably 
most of the beetles. As in combating all flea-beetles the destruc- 
tion of the weeds upon which they multiply is important. 

The Larger Beet Leaf-beetle * 

One of the principal pests of the sugar-beet in Colorado and 
adjacent States is a rather large brownish leaf -beetle which with 
its larvae destroy the foliage or so injure it that the plant dies. 
It is often locally known as the " alkali bug " from the fact the 
injury is mostly on alkali soil or land near it, and *' french bug," 
probably from the "frenching^" of the fohage. The beetle is 
from one-quarter to one-third inch long, and rather resembles 
the elm leaf-beetle, varying from pale yellow to black, with the 
wing-covers striped as shown in Fig. 258. Several wild plants, 
including blites, Russian thistle, and saltbushf probably furnish 
the normal food of the insect. 

" The beetles are gregarious, ' sometimes occurring in swarms 

like bhster-beetles.' Their brownish-gray eggs are deposited 

in irregular masses, usually on the under sides of the leaves. 

They hatch in about six days, and their larvae or young commence 

feeding at once, continuing for nine or ten days, when they dig 

their way into the ground, a few days later coming forth as beetles. 

Although the beetles do much injury, the principal damage is 

sometimes accomplished by the larvae, hundreds being found 

on a single plant, which is either consumed or so injured that it 

shrivels and dies. The larva, shown in the illustration, measures 

* Monoxia jnmcticollis Say. Family Chrysomelidce. 

t Dondia americana and D. depressa, Salsola tragus, and Atriplex argentea. 



306 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

when full grown about one-third of an inch in length. The 
general color is nearly uniform dark olive brown, the conspicuous 
piUferous tubercles being pale yellow, and the head and portions 
of the legs black. The eggs are dull brownish gray, and the 
surface, as seen through a lens, is covered with septagonal and 
hexagonal areas."* 

Control. — Paris green diluted with flour and dusted over the 
foliage has effectively controlled the pest, and probably any 
thorough application of any arsenical either wet or dry would 
be effective. Professor C. P. Gillette f has observed that the 
beetles accumulate on the " mother " beets early in the spring, so 




Fig. 258. — The larger beet leaf-beetle {Monoxia pundicollis Say): a, female 
beetle; b, eggs; c, d, larvae from above and side; 'b, claw of male; o, 
claw of female — all much enlarged. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

that if a few beets were left in the ground over winter they might 
serve as trap plants for the protection of the younger plants in 
spring. As injury is mostly on or near alkali ground, such soil 
should be avoided. 

* Quoted from F. H. Chittenden, Bulletin 43, Bureau Ent., U. S. Dept 
Agr., p. 10. 

t C. P. Gillette, 24th Report Colo. Agr. Exp. Sta. (1902), pp. 108-111. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO BEETS AND SPINACH 



307 



The Beet Leafhopper * 

Very serious loss to the sugar-beet industry has occurred in 
Colorado, California and Utah from a condition known as " curly 
leaf " or " blight." Investigations made by Professor E. D. Ball 
have shown that the " curly leaf " is undoubtedly caused by the 
presence of immense numbers of small leafhoppers, from 10 to 100 
often being found on a plant in badly infested fields. The curly 
leaf condition does not seem to result, however, except when the 




Fia. 259.— The sugarbeet leafhopper (Eutetiix tenella Baker): a, adult; 
h, nymph; /, eggs — greatly enlarged; g, section of beet stem showing 
fresh eggs in place; h, same showing eggs ready to hatch; i, old egg 
scars on beet stems; j, small leaf of sugar beet showing characteristic 
"curly-leaf" condition; k, enlarged section of back of an extreme case 
of curly-leaf showing warty condition of veins. (After Ball, U. S. Dept. 
Agr.) 

soil has become dry and heated, and where plants are shaded or 
irrigated the damage by the leafhoppers does not seem to produce 

* Eutettix tenella Baker. See E. D. Ball, Bulletin 66, Part IV, Bureau 
of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr., and Bulletin 155, Utah Exp. Sta. 



308 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



the same trouble. Similar injury has been noted in parts of 
Oregon, but not of so serious a nature. 

The beet-leafhopper is a pale yellowish-green species (Fig. 
259), one-eighth to three-sixteenths inch long, and when fly- 
ing appears almost white, so that it is sometimes locally called 
the " white fly." 

Life History. — The hibernating habits of the adults and their 
food-plants in the spring have not been well determined. They 




Fig. 260. — "Hopperette" designed for collecting leafhoppers. (After G. C. 
Davis, Mich. Agr. Exp. Sta.) 

appear in the beet-fields late in June and lay their eggs in the 
leaf-stems, the eggs hatching in about two weeks. The young 
nymphs appear in July and are very active, being first found in the 
unfolding leaves at the centre and later spreading to all parts 
of the plant. The nymphs are variously colored, but the com- 
monest form is a pale creamy color with a brown saddle on the 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO BEETS AND SPINACH 309 

middle of the abdomen and various mottlings on the prothorax 
andwingpads. The nymphs become full grown in from sixteen 
to twenty-two days and the adults again become abundant 
in August and September; they evidently hibernate as adults, 
as no more eggs are laid in the fall as far as observed. 

The characteristics of the " curly leaf " are described by Dr. 
Ball as follows: " The first symptom of * curly-leaf ' or ' blight * 
of the beet is a thickening of all the smaller veinlets of the leaf, 
giving it a roughened appearance on the under side. This is 
followed by a cm-ling of the edge and a final rolhng up of the leaf, 
the upper surface always being rolled in. As this progresses the 
smaller veinlets grow still larger and more irregular, knotlike 
swellings appear at frequent intervals, and in extreme cases 
little nipple-like swellings appear, extending to a height of nearly 
one-fourth of an inch. This will be noticed first on a medium- 
sized leaf, gradually spreading to the younger ones, while at the 
same time the beet almost stops growing and a large number of 
fibrous roots are sent out. . . . The beet often continues in this 
way throughout the season; in bad cases it shrivels and dies, 
while in a few instances there is a partial recovery and a new set 
of leaves, though the sugar content remains very low." 

Control. — Practical measures of control do not seem to have 
been very thoroughly tested. With a better knowledge of the 
hibernating habits of the species, it may be possible to reduce its 
numbers at that time. After the hoppers have appeared in 
numbers they must be dealt with promptly. " A thorough 
spraying with kerosene emulsion at a strength of 1 part of the 
stock solution to 5 parts of water, would destroy most of the 
insects that it hit, and by using a drag in front of the nozzles to 
turn the leaves over and cause the insects to jump, most of them 
would be reached." This would probably need to be repeated 
in about ten days. Hopperdozers have often been successfully 
used for collecting various forms of leafhoppers. A modifica- 
tion of the form used against grasshoppers with a couple of wings 
extending out on either side of the row and covered with a sticky 
substance such as " tanglefoot " or that described on page 458 
would undoubtedly prove effective in collecting the adults, 
particularly before the females have laid their eggs, when they 
are more readily caught. A "hopperette " designed by Professor 



310 INSECT PESTS OF FARM; GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

G. C. Davis for use against leaf hoppers on celery in Michigan, 
is shown in Fig. 260, and may be readily attached to the frame 
of a wheel hoe. The string across the notch at A strikes the 
plants and causes the hoppers to jump at the right time. By 
adding high wide wings to either side of this machine it should 
be well adapted for beets and similar crops. 

However, even the capture or killing of large numbers of the 
leafhoppers by the means suggested will not, according to Dr. 
Ball, solve the question of preventing the disease they carry, 
since a single puncture will often kill a leaf. Some means for the 
destruction of the hoppers before they reach the beet fields will 
be necessary before the disease can be eliminated. The outlook 
for certain beet-growing sections is, therefore, still serious. 



Blister-beetles * 

Among those insects attacking the young sugar-beets and 
often doing considerable damage after they have become partly 
grown, few are more widespread or do more general injury than 
the blister-beetles. They have been especially destructive 
in the northern Mississippi Valley, where they are usually worst 
after a period of unusual abundance of grasshoppers. Coming 
suddenly in a large swarm, they settle in a field and thoroughly 





FiQ. 261. — The striped blister-beetle (Epicauta vittata): a, female beetle; 
h, eggs; c, triungulin larva; d, second or caraboid stage; e, same as / 
doubled up as in pod; /, scarabseoid stage; g, coarctate larva — all except 
e enlarged. (After Riley and Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

riddle the foliage with holes or strip it bare before going to another 
field. 

One of the most common forms is the striped blister-beetle, 
or " old-fashioned potato-bug " {Epicauta vittata), which is 

* Family Meloidce. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO BEETS AND SPINACH 311 

shown in the illustration, together with the immature stages. 
The ash-gray blister beetle (Macrobasis unicolor) is also a common 
form, shown in Fig. 247. Three or four other forms are common 
throughout the country, but are especially numerous in the West, 
where grasshoppers are more abundant. The reason for this is 
discussed, along with an outline of the life-histoiy, in Chapter VII 
under the heading of natural enemies of the grasshoppers. 

Remedies. — However, when they swarm into the beet-fields, 
potato- or garden-patches, one cannot afford to allow them to 
consume one crop for the good they may do in saving another 
from still another insect scourge. So be ready for them on 
their first appearance; give the plants a thorough spraying with 
1 pound of Paris green and 1 pound of lime to 125 gallons of water. 
It may be well to spray with Bordeaux mixture, which will 
prevent various fungous diseases, and with which Paris green 
can be used much stronger without danger of burning the foliage; 
or it may be applied dry by mixing with from ten to twenty 
parts of flour or plaster, dusting it on in early morning, while the 
dew is still on the plants. Arsenate of lead sprayed at the rate 
of 3 pounds to 50 gallons, or used as a dust, will be equally effective, 
will adhere to the foHage better, and will be less likely to burn 
the f ohage. 

The Beet or Spinach Leaf-miner * 

Frequently beet and spinach leaves will be found with tor- 
tuous mines or large blotches which have been mined out by 
small white maggots beneath the surface epidermis. This injury 
is most commonly due to the maggot of a small fly shown in 
Fig. 262. " The ground color is gray with the front of the head 
silver white. The body, including the legs, is somewhat sparsely 
covered with rather long stiff black hairs. When in action the 
body is usually carried in a somewhat curved position, but when 
extended measures nearly a quarter of an inch. The maggot 
if) is white, and so nearly transparent that the contents of the 
abdomen can be seen through the posterior portion." 

Life History. — " The flies, by close observation, may be seen 

in flight just above the ground or hovering about their different 

food plants. The eggs are placed on the lower surface of the 

* Pegomyia vicina Lintn. See Chittenden, I.e., from which the quotations 
are taken. 



312 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



leaves and arranged in masses of from two to five. When the 
young hatch they bury themselves within the leaf tissue, con- 
structing a thread-like mine which they afterwards extend in a 
curve or semicircle. Transformation to pupse takes place in 
most cases in loose soil, which the maggots enter to only a short 
distance, or under fallen leaves. Occasionally maggots trans- 
form within a leaf if the latter happens to rest on the ground. 
Dr. Howard states that the eggs hatch in from three to four 




Fig. 262. — The beet leaf-miner {Pegomyia vicina Lintn.): a, fly; h, head of 
male fly; c, head of female; d, surface of egg highly magnified; e, egg; 
/, maggot; g, head of same; j, anal segment; k, anal spiracles — all 
enlarged. (After Howard, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

days, and the larval stage is passed in seven or eight days, the 
puparium or resting stage requiring from ten to twenty days. 
" Injury appears to be most frequent in late fall, but 
even in larger fields such a practice itiight prevent its increase 
may be due to earlier generations in midsummer. " In many 
cases infestation can be traced directly to the insect having 
bred in lambsquarters and similar weeds, which if not destroyed 
by ordinary methods of cultivation mature and die during 
October." 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO BEETS AND SPINACH 313 

Control. — Where this pest occurs in small gardens it may be 
controlled by picking and destroying the infested leaves, and 
even in larger fields such a practice might prevent its increase 
and consequent injury. Those insecticides which have been 
tried as remedies seem to have had no effect. Deep plowing 
and thorough harrowing of infested fields as soon as the crop can 
be removed should greatly lessen injury the next year. As this 
species seems to prefer spinach to beet, Dr. Chittenden has 
suggested that spinach might be used as a trap crop in large 
fields of sugar beets where the injury warranted such a measure. 



CHAPTER XVII 

INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CABBAGE AND RELATED CROPS * 

The Cabbage Maggot f 

Throughout the Middle and Northern States the cabbage mag- 
got is one of the most destructive and most difficult to combat of 




Fig. 263. — Cabbage root infested with maggots. (After Slingerland.) 

all the insects affecting cabbage, cauliflower and radishes. Just 
as the plants are commencing to make a good growth they sud- 

* See Garman, "Insects Injurious to Cabbage," Bulletin 114, Ky. Agr. 
Exp. Sta. 

t Phorbia hrassicce Bouche. Family AnthomyiidcB. See W. J. Schoene, 
Bulletins 382 and 419, N. Y. Agr. Exp. Sta., Journal of Economic Entomol- 
ogy, Vol. IV, p. 210. 

314 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CABBAGE, Etc. 



315 



denly appear sick, many are found wilting, and soon die. Exami- 
nation of the roots shows that they have been riddled by small, 
white maggots as shown in Fig. 263. Early-planted cabbage, 
cauliflower and radishes are particularly affected, and later in the 
season the maggots will be found on turnips and wild mustard. 

These maggots are the larvae of a small fly, resembling the 
house-fly, but distinctly smaller, being only one-fourth inch 
long, with a narrower body and proportionately larger wings. 
It is a grayish color with three dark stripes on the thorax and one 




Fig. 264.— The cabbage maggot fly (Pegomyia brassiccp. Bouche), female, 
greatly enlarged. (After Slingerland.) 

along the middle of the abdomen, and the body bears numerous 
stiff hairs or bristles. The flies appear just as early cabbage is set 
out, in late April and early May in New Jersey, and in late May in 
southern Minnesota. They do not fly far and seem to avoid fields 
which are swept by the wind. 

Life History. — The females deposit their eggs on the stem of 
the plant or in the soil near the stem, at or just beneath the surface 
of the soil, each female laying some fifty eggs. The eggs are most 



316 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

abundant in late May and early June in central New York. Usu- 
ally a female lays but one or two eggs on a plant and prefers to lay 
them in a crevice of the stem or very near it, for if the young mag- 
gots have to travel far to reach their food, many will die before find- 
ing it, and if laid on hard soil the maggots will be unable to pene- 
trate it to the soft tissue of the root, as they are unable to feed on 
the hard stem above ground. The eggs are about one twenty- 
fifth inch long, of a pure white color, which renders them easUy 
seen against the soil by one familiar with them, and are of the 
shape shown in Fig. 265, having a curious ridge along one side. 
The eggs hatch in from three to ten days, averaging five to seven. 
The little maggots at once commence rasping the surface of the 
tender roots, gradually mine into them, and in three or four weeks 
have become full grown. The grown maggot is one-third inch 
long, white or yellowish in color, tapering toward the head and 
obliquely truncate at the tip of the abdomen. From 
the head a pair of strong, black, hook-like, rasp- 
ing jaws project downward, and just back of the 
head on either side is a minute, light brown, fanlike 
projection (Fig. 2676), or spiracle, which leads into 
the breathing system. The oblique posterior end 
is surrounded by twelve rounded tubercles and in 
of cabbage the centre are two brownish spiracles (Fig. 267a). 

maggot, When done feeding the larva burrows one-half to 

greatly en- . 

larged; hair one mch under the surface of the soil, and the outer 

line at center gj^jj^ gradually hardens until it forms a firm brown 
natural size; shell, called a puparium, within which the larva 
6, outline of transforms to a true pupa. Frequently the puparia 
(After Sling- are found in the galleries made by the maggot or in 
erland.) crevices of the roots. During the summer this stage 

lasts about two weeks, but in the fall most of the insects remain in 
this condition over winter. Thus the whole life cycle from egg to 
adult requires about six to ten or twelve weeks, according to the 
temperature and moisture, and the second generation of flies appear 
in June in New Jersey or by mid-July in southern Minnesota. The 
maggots of the second generation seem to do but little damage. 
The life history of the insect during late summer has not been 
satisfactorily determined, but there is undoubtedly a third genera- 
tion and in the South, possibly a fourth, the work of the last gen- 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CABBAGE, Etc. 



317 



eration being sometimes noticed in late cabbage in early fall. 
On Long Island, N. Y., the larvae have been observed as abund- 
ant upon cabbage stumps in September and October, working 
above ground, and the adults and eggs have been common around 
the adventitious buds. Rough estimates indicate 300 to 1500 
maggots per acre on these stumps. The puparia of the last, and 
in the North possibly some of those of the second generation 
remain in the soil over winter, though there is some evidence that 
the flies may also hibernate in the Middle States. 

Control. — The most effective measures of control consists in cul- 
tural methods and preventives, but little practical success having 
attended the use of remedies to kill the maggots. 

Cultural Methods. — Inasmuch as the puparia remain in the soil 
or in the old roots or stumps over 
winter, it is important for this as 
well as other cabbage pests to 
gather and destroy all the refuse 
of the crop as soon as possible and 
then plow infested land thorough- 
ly in the fall. Mr. Schoene has 
shown that by plowing badly in- 
fested seed-beds six or seven 
inches deep that only one-fourth 
as many flies emerged as where '/\ ^X' * 
the soil was undisturbed. A ro- ' ' '"^ 
tation of the crop will be of value 
where cabbages are not grown on 
large acreages. Cabbage and 
other cruciferous crops should not 
be planted after each other, as all 
are affected by the same pests. It is evident that if the crop is plant- 
ed at some distance from that of the previous year, and as the flies 
are known to avoid wind-swept fields, that many of them will not 
succeed in finding the new planting. 

As the maggots infest wild mustard and various similar weeds, 
these should be destroyed as far as* possible and crops affected by 
the maggots should not be planted on or near land badly infested 
with such weeds if avoidable. Wild mustard may be readily killed 



^ 



fr' A rA 






'.V > 
9^ Xk 



ttl^^^ 




Fig. 266. — Eggs of cabbage maggot 
at base of stalk. (Photo by 
Headlee.) 




318 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

by spraying it while young with iron sulfate, 2 pounds to 1 
gallon of water. 

Late-planted cabbage is but slightly affected as compared with 
that planted earlier. The earliest radishes are often quite free 
from the pest, those planted later and maturing just as the flies 
are abundant are badly injured, and the later plantings are free 
from injury. 

It is evident, therefore, that where planting of the main crop 
can be delayed until after most of the flies have oviposited, that 
it will escape serious injury. Furthermore, either cabbage or rad- 
ishes may be used as a trap crop, by planting a few rows early 
and as soon as the flies have laid their eggs on them, plowing 

them under deeply and then set- 
ting the main crop. All of these 
methods involve a familiarity with 
. _. ^ _ the fly and its eggs which any ob- 

5f I ) "^^ servant grower may soon acquire. 

0*^^ High fertilization with a quickly 

Fig. 267.— Cabbage maggot, side available fertilizer will enable the 
view, enlarged, hair line repre- 
sents natural size; a, view of plants to make a rapid growth and 

sTrlcle'blT'if tj-^U "ill be P^fitable even it maggots 

enlarged. (After Slingerland.) do not OCCUr. 
Thorough and frequent cultivation while the eggs are being 
laid destroys many of them. Indeed, one of the best means 
of control, which is extensively practiced by many growers, is to 
hill up the earth around the young plants when set, and as soon as 
eggs are laid, pull the soil containing the eggs away from the plant 
into the middle of the row, where they or the maggots hatching 
from them will be killed by the heat. This involves considerable 
hand work, but where carefully and intelligently followed is one 
of the surest means of control. 

Preventives. — Where late cabbage is grown the plants often be- 
come infested in the seed-bed. To avoid this the seed-beds should 
be covered with cheesecloth. The sides of the frame are made of 
12-inch boards, across which wires are stretched to prevent sag- 
ging of the cloth, as the whole must be fly-tight. The cover 
should be removed a week or ten days before transplanting, so 
that the plants may harden. If eggs are observed in the seed-bed 
during this time, transplant at once. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CABBAGE, Etc. 



31.9 



The most successful preventive yet used consists of a tarred 
felt card placed around each plant so as to form a collar, lying 
upon the surface of the soil and thus preventing the fly from 
depositing her eggs. These cards were originally devised by 
Professor W. H. Goff, of Wisconsin, and have been extensively 
used by large growers in that State for many years, as well as 
in New York, and experiments in New Jersey and Minnesota 
have proven them very satisfactory. The cards should be made 
of one-ply tarred felt, as ordinary tarred paper or building paper 
curls up and is not as effect- 
ive. The cards are made in 
a hexagonal shape, with a 
slit extending from one cor- 
ner to the centre, which is 
slit with a star-shaped cut 
to accommodate the stem. 
The cards are cut with a tool 
shown in Fig. 269, which may 
be made by any blacksmith, 
and are cut out in rows as 
illustrated, one cut of the 
tool making a card. The 
cards should be placed 
around the plants when 
they are set. The earth Fig. 268. 
should be smoothed down 
and well firmed by the hand, the card then applied to the 
plant, and pressed down tight to the ground, so that it fits snugly 
around the stem and the edges of the slit meet. With a little ex- 
perience the cards may be applied rapidly, and though involving 
considerable handwork, the testimony of those who have used 
them for many years shows that the method is entirely practical 
and is ^to be preferred to doubtful remedies. 

A mixture of lime and carbolic acid has recently been used 
by applying it to the surface of the soil around the plants, 
so as to form a slight crust, the carbolic acid acting pos- 
sibly as a repellant. The hme is slaked to a thin cream, and 
diluted to 3 pints to a gallon of water to which is added a table- 
spoonful of crude carbolic acid. It is applied liberally to the 




Cabbage roots destroyed by the 
cabbage maggot. (After Slingerland.) 



320 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 





soil immediately around the plants with a sprinkHng can. This 
has proven quite effective for cabbage in New Jersey, but in 
Minnesota cabbage so treated showed but little benefit, though 
radishes were somewhat protected. Kerosene and sand, gas 
tar and sand, tobacco dust and many other substances have been 
used to place around the plant and act as repellants or preven- 
tives, but all have some objection or have not been sufficiently 
tested to show their effectiveness and practicability. Dr. J, B. 
Smith reports, however, that cauliflower-growers at Richfield, 
N. J., have been using gas tar, 1 part to 25 parts of sand, for 

several years with good re- 
sults. Thegas tar costs $1.25 
a gallon and will treat 1000 
plants. A greater propor- 
tion of gas tar has proven 
injurious. 

Remedies. — For the de- 
struction of the maggots, 
both carbolic acid emulsion 
and hellebore decoction have 
been extensively used with 
varying results, but from the 
evidence so far submitted, 
the grower would hardly 
seem warranted in placing 
much dependence upon 
them, though where preven- 
tive measures have been neg- 
lected, they may aid in reducing the number of maggots and pre- 
vent a total loss. 

The surest method of destroying the maggots on the roots is 
by the use of carbon bisulfide. This is entirely practicable 
on a few plants, but has not come into general use on a large 
scale, as no satisfactory tool for its injection into the soil is avail- 
able. A small hole should be made with a dibble 4 to 6 inches from 
the infested stem, and a teaspoonful of carbon bisulfide injected and 
the hole tightly closed with earth. If made too close to the plant 
the roots will be injured. The fumes kill the maggots by permeat- 
ing the soil. Where plants are badly infested injection on two 
sides may be necessary. 



Fig. 269. — a, tarred felt card in outline 
one-third size; b, tool for cutting 
cards, about one-sixth size; c, show- 
ing how tool is used, dotted line 
indicating position of edge of tool. 
(After Goff.) 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CABBAGE, Etc, 



321 



The Imported Cabbage Worm * 

Probably the worst pest of the cabbage and one of the best- 
known garden insects is the common cabbage worm, whose parent 




ilBrideKw 



Fig. 270. — The cabbage butterfly {Pontia rapce Linn.): a, larva; b, chrysalis; 
c, male butterfly; d, female butterfly. (After C. M. Weed.) 

is the common white butterfly. It is an old European pest and 

was imported near Quebec, Canada, about 1860, whence it spread 

* Pontia rapce Linn. Family PieridoB. See F. H. Chittenden, Bulletin 766 , 
U. S. Dept. Agr. 



322 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



to New England, reached New York in 1868, Cleveland, Ohio, by 
1875, and the Gulf States by 1880, and has since spread to all parts 
of the country. 

The butterflies are among the first to emerge in early spring. 
They are white, marked with black near the tip of the fore-wings, 
which expand nearly 2 inches. The female bears two black spots 
on each fore-wing, while the male has only one, and both sexes have 
a black spot on the anterior margin of the hind-wings. 

Life History. — The butterflies soon commence to lay their eggs 
on whatever food-plant is available. The larvae feed on all of the 
common cultivated crucifers as well as many wild sorts, so that the 
species is never without food. The small yellowish, oval eggs are 





Fig. 271. — Pteromalus puparum, a chalcis-fly which parasitizes the cabbage 
worm and many other injurious insects, male and female greatly enlarged 
— hair line shows natural size. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

laid on end on the foliage, and are marked with prominent longi- 
tudinal ridges. They hatch in from four to eight days. The larvsB 
grow very rapidly, gorging themselves on the foliage, which they 
skeletonize in their well-known manner, and become full grown in 
from ten days to two weeks. The mature cabbage worm is about 
Ij inches long, of a velvety green color, very similar to the fohage, 
with a faint yellow stripe down the middle of the back and a row 
of yellow spots on each side. The surface, when seen under a 
lens, is finely roughened and dotted with small black specks. The 
chrysalis is attached to the foliage by a strand of silk around the 
thorax and is first greenish and later light brown in color. The 
butterflies emerge in from one to two weeks in the summer, but 
the chrysalides of the last generation in fall hibernate over winter 
among the old stalks and rubbish on the fields. Thus the whole 
life cycle in summer requires from three to five weeks. In New 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CABBAGE, Etc. 



323 



England there are three generations a season and there are prob- 
ably five or six in the extreme South, as the butterflies there remain 
on the wing all winter. 

Enemies. — Fortunately, the parasites of the cabbage worm are 
becoming very effective in checking its multiplication, and in 
many sections of New England where it has existed the longest, 
it rarely becomes very injurious, so well do the parasites control 
it. Most of these are importations from Europe, one of the 
most important being a small wasp-like Braconid fly (Apanteles 
glomeratus Linn.) which was purposely imported from England 
in 1883. During the autumn of 1904 Dr. Chittenden states that 






Fig. 272. — Apanteles glomeratus, a parasite of the cabbage worm: a, adult 
fly; b, cocoon; c, flies escaping from cocoons — natural size, a, h, highly 
magnified. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

it killed practically every worm at Washington, D. C. The maggots 
of these little parasites live within the worms and when full grown 
come forth and spin masses of small white cocoons on the foliage, 
often attached to the dead or dying worm (Fig. 272). Another 
very important parasite is a minute Chalcis-fly (Pteromalus 
puparum Linn.), about one-sixteenth of an inch long, which was 
probably imported with its host. These often emerge in immense 
numbers, hundreds of them often being secured from a single 
worm. Wasps frequently prey on the caterpillars, using them for 
provisioning their nests. Various predaceous bugs also attack 
the worms as well as numerous other internal parasites. 




CABBAGE 



The 
Imported 

Cabbag^e 
But-terfly 

is tKe p arent of the 
COMMONjn 
CABBAGE ^ -^ 




Wutella 






The 
cross-s 'iped 
calibagr worm 



^ The looperworm spine a. 
cocoon In which it changes 




The Cabbage 
JLooper 
is 
the 
^young of a Moth 



. The but- 
terflies lay 
ieire??s mostly 
an under sides of 
the cal)ba?e leaves. 

Theyoun?vOTm5 
I hatch from them in. 
[ 4 to 8 days , feed on the 
leaves and reach matur- to a pupa before trans- 
ity in 10 to 1+ daya Then forming to the moth. 

each attaches itself iy 
a thread around the body to a leaf, 
stalk, fence post.orany other 5upport,aiidtransfonnJtoa 
pupa called a cAr>'J''2''wl^rom this the butterfly emerses 
In from 7 to 12 days. In northern States there may be three 
g'enerations during the season and in southernStates five 
or six. The last chrysalides formed in fall remain thus over 
winter on dead stalks and produce butterflie s the f ol- 
lowinj spring". 

V SPRAY 

^ '>r 'With an 

^- ARSENICAL 



in soapy water 

f^^ j^ij — va^i^^- TomakeSOgallonsofspraydiMolve + llsoflaujy 

of cabbage dry soap orotScr gooi soap in several saUons of water by boil- 

woi-m if^j Add this tocncushwatertomaKe SOgallonsThenstir 

in the arjenical(lHlb3 of poivdcred arsenate of leader J Ihs. of put* 

form, or other arsenic aJs according to direct ions on p«cKage).Tle 

soap IS to make the liiju id adhere btller to iKe smooth leaves. 

To make one gallon of spray use 'A oz of powdered arsenate 
of Ifad.orloi.of paste form, and an inch cube of soap. 

DUSTING may be substituted for spraying. usin^lpart of 
powdered ar3enicalv/ilh4 parts of air-slaked lime. Ji\ small jaff 
dens the mixture may be shaken on the plants from a cheesecloth 
bay Apply tKinlywhile thedcw is on the leaves. 
.,__ COD AN/rr» Since therabba^eheadgrows frominsidetheplant 

NOT oKKAYtU there is no danger from poisoning If outer leaves are re- 

moved before cooking sprayins isBafe to within three 
Result at end of season from severe veeks of harvest U spraying is begun early in llie sea- 
infestation.yVfcf^ u-ndevehped hcjd son the re will belittle damafe from Jalc broods ofwormi 



FlQ. 273.— Bureau of Entomology (U. S. Dept. of Agr.) chart showing 
cabbage worms. 

324 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CABBAGE, Etc. 325 

Control. — As the chrysalids pass the winter on the old stumps, 
foliage, and rubbish on the field, it is evident that they should be 
destroyed and the field plowed as soon after the crop is removed 
as possible. A few stalks may well be left standing here and 
there and be kept well poisoned, so as to act as traps to destroy 
worms from eggs laid by late female 

The most effective means of control is spraying or dusting 
with Paris green or arsenate of lead. The former is used ^ pound 
to the barrel and the latter 2 to 3 pounds per barrel of water. 
As the foliage of cabbage is extremely smooth it will be advisable 
to add 2 or 3 pounds of resin soap or " sticker " to render the 
material more adhesive. The arsenicals should be applied as 
soon as the plants are set, and they should be kept well covered 
until the heads are half formed. If this is done, the young larvae 




Fig. 274. — The southern cabbage butterfly; a, male; b, female. (After Riley.) 

will be destroyed before they burrow into the heads, and there 
will be but little damage after the spraying is stopped. Although 
there is some prejudice against poisoning cabbage, it is entirely 
unfounded, for it has been shown that a person would need to eat 
twenty-eight cabbages at once, if dusted in the ordinary manner, 
to secure poisonous effects. It is obvious that plants should not 
have large quantities of dust placed on them after they commence 
to head, and such applications are entirely unnecessary. 

Various contact insecticides may be used against the worms 
on a few plants, but are not practicable for large acreages. Thus 
water heated to 150° F., will kill all the worms which it hits. 
Kerosene emulsion will kill the larvae, but must hit them, and 
may leave an odor on the plant. Pyrethrum or buhach has been 
used effectively, applying it either dry or diluted with flour, 
or sprayed as a decoction at the rate of 1 ounce to a gallon of 
water. Dilute tobacco extract has also proven effective, but 



326 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 




.^ 



Fig. 275. — The southern cabbage butterfly: 
a, larva; b, pupa. (After Riley.) 



all of these substances have the disadvantage that they must 
be brought into actual contact with the worms to kill them. 

The Southern Cabbage Butterfly * 

Before the invasion of the imported cabbage worm this species 
was the cause of considerable injury from the Middle States 

southward, but it has 
I / /' (// now been largely replaced 
and overshadowed in im- 
portance by the imported 
species. The male but- 
terfly is very similar in 
marking to the female of 
P. rapoe, and would not 
be distinguished on the 
wing. The female is 
more heavily marked with 
black, as shown in the figure. The caterpillar is a greenish-blue 
color with four longitudinal, yellow stripes, and covered with black 
dots. The habits are very similar to those of the imported cab- 
bage worm, and the same methods of control should be used. 

The Potherb Butterfly f 

This species is more common in the North and East and is 
distinguished from its near rela- 
tives by the wings being uniform 
white without spots. The larvie 
are very similar to those of the 
imported species and the habits 
are very similar. Like the south- 
ern species, though formerly very 
common and often injurious, this 
species is now rarely common 
enough to do much iniury and Fig. 276.— The potherb butterfly 
feeds mostly on wild plants. The and caterpillar. (After Harris.) 
same remedies as for the imported species should be used. 

* Pontia protodice Boisd. Family PieridcB. 
t Pontia napi Linn. Family Pierida;. 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CABBAGE, Etc. 



327 



The Cabbage Looper * 

Next to the imported cabbage worm the looper is probably 
the most serious pest of cabbage and closely resembles it in the 
way it strips the foliage.f The name " looper " is derived from 
its " looping " habit of walking like a measuring worm, due to the 
absence of legs on the third and fourth abdominal segments. The 
larvse are pale to dark green in color, marked with several 
longitudinal white lines, as shown in Fig. 277, which become 
obscure as they become full grown, so that they might be easily 
mistaken for the com- 
mon cabbage worms 
were it not for the 
looping gait. The 
species occurs 
throughout the ter- 
ritory east of the 
Rockies, but is much 
more commonly in- 
jurious in the Middle 
and Southern States. 
Although cabbage and 
cauliflower are the fa- 
vorite food plants, it 
attacks all of the cru- 
ciferous crops, is fre- 
quently injurious to 
lettuce, peas, celery 
and beets, and has Fig. 277 — The cabbage looper (Aidogmpha bras- 
u^^v, f^,,r..i iiv^^v, r,n,'fQ sicoe Riley): a, male moth; b, egg from above 
been found upon quite ^^^^ from side; c, full grown larva in natural 
a list of cultivated position feeding; d, pupa in cocoon — a, c, d, 
^^r.^c cr^A TTQr-i'rMic one-tliifd larger than natural size, 6, more 
crops and various g^^i^^ged. (After Howard and Chittenden, 
weeds. U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

Life History. — The life history has not been carefully observed, 

but it seems probable that the winter is passed in the pupa stage 

in the old leaves, stumps and rubbish of the cabbage field. Sirrine 

* Autographa brassicoe Riley. Family Noctuidoe. See F. H. Chittenden, 
Bulletin 33, n. s., Div. Ent., U. S Dept. Agr.; F. A Sirrine Bulletin 144, 
N. Y. Agr. Exp. Sta. 
t See also page 324 




328 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



states that the life history is similar to that of the imported 
cabbage worm, and it seems probable that there are three genera- 
tions a year in the Middle States, and possibly more farther 
South. Injury to cabbage seems to be worse in late summer. 
When full grown the larva spins a very thin, transparent, white 
cocoon, attached to the leaf upon which it has been feeding and 
in it transforms to the light-brown pupa. The pupal stage varies 
from a week in midsummer to three weeks in October, and the 
pupse of the last brood hibernate over winter. 

The moth has a wing expanse of about Ij inches, and the fore- 
wings are grayish-brown mot- 
tled with gray, whitish, and 
blackish, as shown in Figs 
277, 278. Just inside of the 
centre of the fore-wings is a 
characteristic white spot. The 
hind-wings are paler brown, 
with the outer border darker, 
and the margins of both 
wings are strongly scalloped. 

Control. — The same general 
methods as advised for the im- 
ported cabbage worm will 
effect the control of this spe- 
cies. Sirrine states that dust- 
ing the plants with Paris green 
has not proved satisfactory, 
but found the use of Paris 
green with the resin soap stick- 
er to be very effective. Arsen- 
ate of lead is more adhesive 
and is therefore superior for 
cabbage but will be improved by the addition of the "sticker." 




Fig. 278. — The cabbage looper moth 
at rest from side and from above — 
natural size. 



The Diamond-back Moth * 

The larvse of the imported diamond-back moth or cabbage 
plutella are commonly found on cabbage wherever it is grown 

* Plutella maculipennis Curtis. Family Tineidoe. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CABBAGE, Etc. 



329 



and as a rule do but little injury, though occasionally they be- 
come troublesome. 

" The larvae when full grown measures three-tenths inch in 
length, tapers a little to the extremities, and is of a pale green 
color. It is active and irritable, in this respect being very 
different from any of the larger larvae described." The wings 
of the parent moth " are kept folded against the sides of the body, 
are a little turned up at the tips, and are provided with a long 
fringe. The color above on the head, thorax, and upper part 
of the closed wings is a light clay-yellow. That part of the 
wings that is lowest when they are folded is bronze brown, this 
color terminating abruptly where it meets the clay-yellow of 
the back by a well-defined sinuous margin. The length from 
the front of the head to 
the tip of the folded 
wings is about one- 
fourth inch."* 

" The eggs are whit- 
ish, very minute, and 
are attached to the 
leaves, though some- 
times when very abun- 
dant they are, it is said, 
placed on the sides of 
crates holding cab- 
bage." The full-grown 
larvae pupate in small 
cocoons composed of a delicate lace-work of silken threads through 
which the whitish, often brown-striped, pupa may be seen. In 
winter the cocoons containing pupae are found on old cabbage 
stalks in the field or on stored cabbage. Two or three genera- 
tions a year occur in the more northern states and four or five 
generations farther south, while in the extreme South it may be 
found active practically throughout the year. The species has a 
world-wide distribution. 

" During very dry weather these little insects become exceed- 
ingly common, and riddle the cabbage leaves with small holes. 
Wet weather, on the other hand, has long been known to be 
* H. Garman, Bulletin 114, Ky. Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 29. 




Fig. 27P. — The cabbage plutella or diamond- 
back moth (Plutella macidipennis Curtis) : a, 
larva; b, segment of same greatly enlarged; d, 
pupa; e, pupa in cocoon; /, adult moth; g, 
wings of dark variety; h, moth with wings 
folded. (After Riley^ U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



330 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



unfavorable to them," and drenching the plants with water has 
been recommended as one of the best means of control. The 
same remedies applied for the other cabbage worms will readily 
control this little pest. 




Fig. 280. — The harlequin cabbage bug {Murgantia histrionica Hahn.): a, 
eggs — enlarged; h, nymphs, more enlarged; d, adults seen from above 
and below — enlarged; e, head and beak of same; /, parasite of eggs — 
enlarged; bugs and eggs (a) on leaf, natural size. (After W. G. Johnson.) 

The Harlequin Cabbage-bug * 

Southern truckers have been familiar with the harlequin 

cabbage-bug, " calico-back," " terrapin-bug," or " fire-bug," as 

* Murgantia histrionica Hahn. Family Pentaiomidoe. See F. H. Chitten- 
den, Farmers' Bulletin 1061, U. S. Dept. Agr.; R. I. Smith, Journal Economic 
Entomology, Vol. II, p. 108, and F. B. Paddock, Bulletin 179, Texas Agr. 
Expt. Station. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CABBAGE, Etc. 



331 



it is variously called, for the past generation. A native of 
Mexico and Central America, it migrated into Texas about 1864 
and then spread eastward along the Gulf Coast, and northward 
until it reached Maryland and Virginia, about 1880, New 
Jersey in the early 90's, and up the Mississippi Valley to southern 
Ohio and Indiana by 1890. On the Pacific Coast it is found in 
southern California and Nevada. Although it spread to Long 
Island, N. Y., southern Pennsylvania, and northern Ohio, and 
Indiana, its advance was checked by the cold winters of the late 




Fig. 2Sl, — Field of caliiiage in l)(>l:i\vare ruined l)y the liarl('c|uiii Inig. 



90's and it will probably never become very injurious north of 
the Potomac and Ohio rivers. 

The appearance of the gayly colored bugs, shining black or 
deep blue, marked with brilliant red or orange, as shown in 
Fig. 280, is so distinctive that they are readily recognized, and 
gives them the name of harlequin-bug or calico-back. They 
are about one-half inch long, flattened, and the general shape 
and markings have given them the local name of " terrapin 
bug." The bugs suck the sap from the leaves of cabbage and other 
crucifers, the plants wilting and dying, and turning black as if 



332 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

they had been swept by fire; hence the name " fire-bug." A 
half-dozen of the adult bugs will destroy a small plant in a day 
or two, and as they frequently appear in enormous numbers and 
as they multiply rapidly, unless they are fought vigorously they 
will soon destroy a large patch of cabbage. 

Life History. — The adults hibernate over winter in old cabbage 
stumps and under the leaves and other rubbish left on the field, 
and emerge early the next spring. In South Texas they may 
be found at work nearly all winter, being common in February 
and March; in North Carolina they appear about April 1st, and in 
Maryland about May 1st. The eggs of the first generation are 
deposited mostly on kale, wild mustard or other wild cruciferse, 
each female laying about 100. They are placed in a double 
row of about a dozen and are white, marked with two black bands 
and a small spot, which makes them look like small white barrels 
with black hoops. The eggs of the spring generation hatch in 
about ten days, and the nymphs feed upon the cabbage for from 
six to nine weeks before becoming full grown in North Carolina 
and the District of Columbia, while in the Gulf States the eggs 
hatch in four to eight days and the nymphs become full grown 
in three or four weeks, the development of these stages being 
determined by the temperature. The nymphs are much like 
the adults in coloration, though differently marked and lacking 
wings. They molt five times, some of the different stages being 
shown in the figure. From North Carolina northward there 
seem to be but three generations of the insect. The summer 
generation develops more rapidly, the eggs hatching in four or 
five days, but the fall generation requires about the same time as 
in spring. In midsummer the whole life cycle may be passed in 
about two weeks in the Gulf States, according to various author- 
ities, so that there may be a half dozen generations, though the 
exact life history does not seem to have been observed there. 

Control. — This is an exceedingly difficult pest to combat after 
it has become numerous in the cabbage patch, so that every effort 
should be made to prevent its appearance. As it hibernates under 
old stalks and leaves it is obvious that they should be cleaned up 
and the field plowed as soon as the crop is harvested. By leaving 
a few piles of stalks, leaves and rubbish, the bugs might be concen- 
trated and then destroyed. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CABBAGE, Etc. 333 

The most successful method of control yet devised is the use 
of a trap-crop, to which the bugs are lured as they emerge from 
hibernation and on which they may be destroyed before they 
attack the cabbage. Kale planted in the fall or mustard planted 
early in the spring serves well for a catch crop, and should be 
planted in rows through the intended cabbage-field. The bugs 
seem to prefer the kale to the young cabbage, and while concen- 
trated upon it they should be killed by spraying them with pure 
kerosene. The trap-crop may well be planted at different dates, 
so that after one row has been destroyed by spraying, another will 
invite the remaining bugs. The nymphs may be destroyed by 
spraying them with 15 per cent kerosene emulsion or whale-oil soap, 
one-half pound per gallon. Whale-oil soap used at the rate of 1 to 
2 pounds to the gallon will kill most of the adult bugs hit by 
it without injury to the cabbage, but dependence should not be 
placed upon control by spraying, as its practicability on a large 
scale is yet to be demonstrated. 

The Cabbage-aphis * 

Wherever cabbage is grown the common " cabbage-louse " 
occasionally becomes abundant enough to do serious damage, 
often destroying young plants, which become covered with the 
disgusting masses of grayish aphids. They are found commonly 
in almost every cabbage-patch, but usually their natural enemies 
are so effective as to prevent their increase; otherwise they would 
be one of the most serious pests of cruciferous crops. They may 
be found on all of the cultivated and wild cruciferse, but cabbages 
and turnips are injured worst, serious damage often being done to 
turnips in the South. 

" The wingless viviparous female has a rather long oval body, 
covered with a whitish mealy coat. When this coat has been 
removed . . . the body is seen to be a grayish-green color, with 
eight black spots down either side of the back, increasing in size 
toward the posterior end. The antennas are green with black tips, 
and are shorter than the body, and the eyes, legs and tail are 

* Aphis brassicoe Linn. Family Aphididoe. See C V. Riley, Report of 
U. S. Commissioner of Agriculture, 1884, p. 317. C. M. Weed, "Insect 
Life," Vol. Ill, p. 289. G. W. Herrick, Bulletin 300, Cornell Univ. Expt. 
Station. F. H. Chittenden and C. H. Popenoe, Bulletin 2, Va. Truck Exp. 
Sta., p. 22. 



334 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



black. The young when first hatched are oval, shining, bright 
yellow in color, and lack the mealy coat. The winged viviparous 
female is yellowish-green, with the eyes, neck and thoracic lobes 
black, and the antennae and nectaries dark brown. The legs are 
dusky brown and hairy; the tail is dark green or brown and also 
hairy; the wings are rather short, with stout coarse veins and dark 
stigma." (Riley). 

Life History. — Though the cabbage-aphis is an old European 
species and was observed in this country as early as the latter part 
of the eighteenth century, its life history has only recently been 
carefully worked out by Professor G. W. Herrick and Mr. J. W. 
Hungate of Cornell University (I.e.), from whose account the fol- 
lowing is taken: 

The oviparous females appear in the fall and are fertilized by 

the males, and deposit 
their eggs in large num- 
bers on the leaves of the 
cabbage, during October 
and the first days of 
November, in central 
New York. The eggs 
are laid on rape, turnip, 
brussels sprouts and 
kohl-rabi but are most 
abundant on cabbage, 
particularly in the crevices and depressions of the under surfaces of 
the leaves. On leaves taken at random from a badly infested patch, 
from 177 to 293 eggs were found on a leaf. Two to three eggs are 
laid by each oviparous female. When first laid the eggs are a 
yellowish-green, but soon turn a shining black. From eggs taken 
at random and left under normal outdoor conditions, 76 per cent 
hatched the next spring, while all eggs hatched which were laid by 
females known to have been fertilized. Eggs hatched about 
April 1, 1910, in central New York, the season being an early one. 
From the stem mothers which hatched from these eggs, twenty- 
one generations of wingless females were reared up to December 3, 
1910, the average length of a generation being about twelve days. 
During the summer generations of winged females are produced, 
especially on crowded plants, and these serve to spread the pest to 




Fig. 282. — ^The cabbage-aphis {Aphis brassicoe 
Linn.) : o,vvinged form; b, wingless viviparous 
female — greatly enlarged. (After Curtis.) 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CABBAGE, Etc. 335 

unaffected plants. The wingless females become full grown in 
about thirteen days during the summer and live for about forty -six 
days, during which time they will give birth to an average of forty- 
one young, producing as high as six young in a day. The winged 
forms are much shorter lived, living only about ten days and giving 
birth to but from seven to thirteen young. 

There is no question that in the Southern States the viviparous 
females may continue to reproduce all winter, and it is quite prob- 
able that some of them survive in pits and cellars in the North, 
where eggs also probably occur. Thus Sirrine* states that it ** is 
certain that this aphid can survive the winter on cabbage stored 
in cellars or pits, also that cabbage stored in pits for seed purposes 
furnishes the supply of aphids for infesting the seed stalks in early 
spring." This being the case it should be an easy matter to de- 
stroy the aphids by fumigation before removing them from the pits. 

Control. — From the habits outlined it is evident that, as for 
other cabbage pests, the refuse of the crop should be cleared up and 
destroyed in the fall. Any of the standard contact insecticides, 
such as kerosene emulsion, 1 part stock solution to 15 parts of 
water, whale-oil soap, 1 pound to 6 gallons, or " Black-leaf 40,' ' 
1 part to 800 of water, will destroy the aphids, but the spray- 
ing must be thorough, as the waxy coating serves to protect 
them. According to Professor Franklin Sherman, any good 
laundry soap used at the rate of 1 pound dissolved in 3 gallons of 
water, will destroy the aphids. Where water under pressure is 
available in a small garden, the aphids may be held in check by 
washing them from the plants with a strong stream from a garden 
hose. Plants infested in the seed-bed may be freed from the 
aphis by dipping in whale-oil soap solution, 1 part to 8 of water. 

Fortunately for the grower, the cabbage-aphis is usually held 
in check by numerous parasitic enemies, principally little wasp- 
like flies of the family Braconidce, and by several species of lady- 
bird-beetles and syrphus-fly larvae, which will often destroy a 
colony within a few days. 

The Spinach-aphis or Green Peach-aphis f 

Another species of aphis often becomes destructive to cabbage, 
spinach, celery and lettuce, as well as various greenhouse crops, 

\F. A. Sirrine, Bulletin 83, N. Y. Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 675. 
t Myzus 'persiccB Sulz. 



336 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



In the fall it migrates to peach, and is also known as the green 
peach-aphis, as which it is discussed on page 587 

The Turnip Louse * 

The turnip louse, also called the false cabbage aphis has recently- 
been recognized as a separate pest of crops of this group. It is 
rather southern in its damage but extends over a large part of 




Fig. 283.— The spinach-aphis (Myzus persicoe Sulz.): which often becomes 
a cabbage pest: a, winged adult; b, young nymph; c, older nymph; d, 
last stage of nymph — all greatly enlarged. (After Chittenden, U. S. 
Dept. Agr.) 

the country. Mr. Paddock's excellent summary of the insect 
according to his observations in Texas, is given here verbatim: 

" A new species of plant louse, commonly called the turnip 
louse, and not the cabbage louse, as was formerly supposed, does 
the damage to the fall turnips and winter truck. This damage is 
general over the entire State of Texas. Not only do the truck 

* Aphis pseudobrassicce Davis. See J. J. Davis, Bulletin 185, Purdue Univ. 
Expt. Station; and F. B Paddock, Bulletin 180, Texas Agr. Expt. Station. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CABBAGE, Etc. 837 

regions suffer, but every home garden is damaged by the turnip 
louse. 

The food plants of the turnip louse are turnips, cabbage, 
mustard, cauliflower, kale, rutabaga and rape. 

The normal form of reproduction of the turnip louse in Texas 
is asexual throughout the year. Observations have been made 
upon this louse in Texas from Brownsville, on the 26th parallel, 
to Wichita Falls, on the 34th parallel. True hibernation does not 
take place in Texas, even at the northernmost point of occurrence 
the lice reproduce some during the winter. The summer is the 
critical period in the life history of the turnip louse, as it is forced 
to sheltered locations and none of the 
cultivated^ host plants are grown at 
that time of the year. Thirty-five gen- 
erations of the lice were reared in pot 
cages in one year. 

Two other species of plant life are 
often found closely associated with the 
turnip louse. These are the "garden 
aphis " and the cabbage louse. 

The natural factors, of control of the 
turnip louse are widespread over the 
State. Two species of parasites, Dia- 
eretus rayae Curt., and LysivUehus ""'^^^It^^^l-^^Z^ tZ^. 
testaceipes Cress., have been commonly (After Paddock.) 
found, the former at College Station and the latter in other sections. 
Three species of lady beetles have been observed to feed freely 
on the turnip louse. These are Hippodamia convergens Guer., 
Megilla maculata DeG., and Coccinella munda Say. Syrphid 
flies and lace-wing flies are usually found in limited numbers 
where the turnip lice are abundant. A fungous disease was very 
destructive to the turnip louse during the season of 1914 at College 
Station. 

For the artificial control of the turnip louse, spraying is the most 
satisfactory method. Of the materials which can be used for spray- 
ing, laundry soap solution gives as satisfactory results as any and is 
easily obtainable. The secret of success in the control of the turnip 
louse is the use of the 45° elbow and an " angle " type spray nozzle. 




338 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

By the use of these it is possible to direct the spray on the under 
sides of the leaves, where the lice feed. 

The preventive measures against the turnip louse are rotation, 
proper planting time, trap crops, clean culture, and the destruction 
of the first colonies." 

Flea-beetles * 

A considerable number of small flea-beetles attack cabbage and 
other cruciferous crops, and although as a rule only troublesome, 
they appear periodically in enormous numbers and do serious 
injury. They are mostly small species (there being seven species 
of the genus Phyllotreta alone) not over an eighth of an inch long. 
One of the most 'common throughout the country is the striped 
turnip flea-beetle.f It is polished black with each wing-cover 
marked with a broad, wavy band of pale yellow. The microscopic 
white eggs are laid in a little excavation of the root near the crown 
of the plant. The larvae mine into the roots and have been 
reported to do considerable injury to them, but it seems probable 
that most of them live upon the roots of cruciferous weeds. The 
full grown larva (Fig. 285a), is about three-eighths inch long, 
quite slender and tapering, yellowish white, with brown head and 
anal plate, and with marks on the thorax and transverse rows of 
minute hair-bearing tubercles as shown in the figure. The West- 
ern cabbage flea-beetle J is the more common from the Dakotas 
southward to Mexico and westward to southern California. It is a 
uniform deep olive-green, with the surface irregularly punctate, 
and 7-100 inch long. Another species almost indistinguishable from 
the first species above, is the wavy-striped flea-beetle, § whose larvae 
mine in the leaves of wild pepper grass {Lepidium virginicum), 
and is most abundant in the Middle and Southern States. The 
life history has been fully described by Dr. Riley (I.e.). 

Control. — Where the plants are sprayed for the cabbage worms 

with Paris green or arsenate of lead, there will probably be little 

trouble with flea-beetles. Otherwise, spray with arsenate of lead; 

3 to 5 pounds per barrel, or Paris green one-third to one-half 

pound, adding the resin soap or " sticker," so as to give the 

* Family Chrysomelidoe. Refer to pages 266, 303, for other flea-beetles* 
See C. V. Riley, Report U. S. Commissioner Agr., for 1884, pp. 301-308. 
t Phyllotreta vittata Fab. 
X Phyllotreta pusilla Horn. 
§ Phyllotreta sinuata Steph. {zimmermani Crotch.) 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CABBAGE, Etc. 



339 



foliage a good thick coating, for the spray probably acts fully 
as much as a repellant as a remedy. Where injury is antici- 
pated it will be well to dip the plants in arsenate of lead 1 pound 
to 10 gallons of water when planting them. By thoroughly dust- 
ing the plants with lime, land plaster, strong tobacco dust, dilute 
pyrethrum, or any of the dusts commonly used for such insects. 





FiG.^285. — The striped turnip flea- Fig. 286. — The western cabbage flea- 
beetle (JPhyllotreta vittataYah.): beetle — much enlarged. (After Riley, 
a, larva; h, adult — greatly en- U. S. Dept. Agr.) 
larged. (After Riley, U. S. 
Dept. Agr.) 

applying the dust in the early morning while the dew is on the 
plants, they may be protected from attack as long as they are 
kept thoroughly covered. It is evident that the weeds upon 
which these pests develop in the larval stage should be destroyed. 
Where plants are attacked in the seed-bed, screening as advised 
for the root-maggot will prevent injury. Cloth with from 20 to 30 
threads to the inch has proven most satisfactory for the screens, 
which should be applied early and be made perfectly tight. 



CHAPTER XVIII 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MELONS, CUCUMBERS, SQUASH, ETC.* 

The StripOd Cucumber-beetle f 

Just as the httle cucumber and melon plants appear above the 
soil they are attacked by hordes of hungry black-and-yellow-striped 

beetles, which feed 
ravenously upon 
the succulent seed- 
leaves, often killing 
them entirely so that 
reseeding is neces- 
sary. This little 
striped beetle, often 
known as the 
"striped-bug "or 
"melon-bug," is 
well known to all 
growers of cucurbs 

Fig. 287.— The striped cucumber -beetle (Diabrotica east of the Rocky 
vittata Fab.): a, beetle; b, larva; c, pupa; d, egg; e, Mountains and 
sculpture of egg — a, b, c, much enlarged, d, more ' 

enlarged; e,highly magnified. (After Chittenden, also OCCUrs in 
S. Dept. Agr.) Washmgton. 

The beetle is about two-fifths inch long and half as wide, of a 
bright yellow color with a black head and three black stripes on 
the wing-covers. 

Life History. — The beetles hibernate over winter in the ground 
where they have been feeding the previous fall, or along the edge of 
woodlands, or wherever suitable shelter is obtained, and emerge 
in the spring two or three weeks before cucurbs are planted. At 

* See A. L. Quaintance, Bulletin 45, Geo. Agr. Exp. Sta.; J. B. Smith, 
Bulletin 94, N. J. Agr. Exp. Sta.; R. I. Smith, Bulletins 205 and 214, No. 
Car. Agr. Exp. Sta. 

t Diabrotica vittata Fab. Family Chrysomelidre. See F. H. Chittenden, 
Farmers' Bulletin, 1038, U.S. Dept. Agr.; T. J. Headlee, 20th Report N. H. 
Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 499. 

340 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MELONS, CUCUMBERS, Etc. 341 



this season they seem to feed on ahnost anything, as they 
have been observed feeding on a long hst of food-plants, frequent- 
ing flowers whose petals are eaten. As soon as squash, melons, 
or cucumbers break through the soil, they gather upon them 
and refuse all other food. If the foliage is covered with any 
offensive substance they will seek out 
spots which have not been reached and 
feed upon them, which fact is of im- 
portance in considering remedies. After 
feeding upon cucurbs for a few days the 
beetles pair and the females commence 
to deposit eggs. The eggs are deposited 
singly and are merely dropped in crev- 
ices of the soil or in the opening around 
the stem of the plant. The egg is oval, 
about one-fortieth inch long, bright yel- 
low, and sculptured with microscopic 
hexagonal pits. A female lays about 
one hundred eggs during a period of a 
month, and they hatch in about eight 
days at a mean temperature of 74° F. 
The larva is a slender, white, worm-like 
grub, about three-tenths inch long, with 
dark-brown head and anal-plate, and lighter brown thorax. The 
larvae bore into the roots, often tunneling into the base of the stem, 
and sometimes mine into melons lying on damp soil. Rarely does 
injury by the larvae become noticeable, though we have observed 
whole patches of cucumber and melon vines killed by them, which 
seems remarkable, considering the immense numbers of the beetles 
which must give rise to many times more larvae. The larva 
becomes full grown in about a month and then forms a delicate 
earthen cell just below the surface of the soil and in it transforms 
to the whitish pupa, from which the beetle emerges in from one to 
two weeks, according to the temperature. In southern New 
Hampshire the beetles emerge from the last of August to the first of 
October, the complete life cycle requiring from seven to nine weeks, 
there being but one generation a year, and this seems to be true 
in New York. In Kentucky the complete cycle requires but 
thirty-nine days, and in the District of Columbia newly emerged 




Fig. 288. — Larva of strip- 
ed cucumber beetle at 
work in cucumber stem. 
(Photo by Headlee.) 



342 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



beetles are found by mid-July, so that there are undoubtedly two 
generations in that latitude, as the l)eetles have been found pairing 
and with well-developed eggs in Delaware, August 1st. In the 
latter part of the season the beetles feed on the blossoms and 
pollen, particularly of squash, rarely touching the foliage. With 
the first frosty nights they seek sheUer under the fallen leaves and 
enter hibernation with the first killing frosts. 

Control. — For a few plants or where the beetles are unusually 
abundant, coverings of netting have long been used to protect 
the plants. A barrel hoop cut in two, crossed, and the ends 

fastened to another hoop, 
and the whole then covered 
with netting, makes an 
admirable cover, often sold 
by dealers. Two stout wires 
bent into arches and crossed, 
may also be covered with 
netting, the lower edge of 
which is held by earth 
packed over the edges. Or 
cone-shaped covers may be 
fashioned out of wire screen- 
ing and kept from year to 
cucurbs. (After Headlee.) ' y^^^.^ (SeeHeadlee, I.e.) 

Many growers obviate loss of plants and the necessity of 
replanting by sowing the seed in rows rather thickly and then 
thinning out to the desired distance after the worst injury by the 
beetle is passed. Others make several plantings in each hill at 
intervals of a week, but the former plan will ensure earlier growth. 

The growing of rows of early beans to act as a trap-crop has 
been suggested, as the beetles will gather on them, it is said, and 
having an abundance of food will not injure the cucurbits. Squash 
may be effectively used in this way as the beetles are peculiarly 
fond of the quick-growing squash seedlings. A week or ten days 
before the regular crop, plant rows of squash seed around and 
through the prospective field, and plant more rows when the regu- 
lar crop is planted. If the main crop be kept well dusted or 
sprayed as advised below, the beetles will concentrate on the trap- 




Fig. 289. — ^Wire screen cover for young 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MELONS, CUCUMBERS, Etc. 343 

squash and might be destroyed upon it by spraying with pure 
kerosene. 

Liberal fertihzation with quick-acting fertihzers will aid the 
young plants to make a quick growth and thus outgrow the injury. 

Growers have long known that if the plants are kept thoroughly 
covered with some sort of dust that the beetles will not molest 
them, and various sprays have been used in the same way. To be 
effective, the plants must be dusted in early morning while the 
dew is on and all parts of the plant, above and below, must be 
thoroughly covered. This must be repeated as often as the dust 
is washed or blown off, or the plant outgrows it. Air-slaked lime 
mixed with sulfur, tobacco dust, and bug-death have been the most 
effective, though similar powders will be found beneficial. Bor- 
deaux mixture has been recommended for this purpose, but seems 
to have a stunting effect on the young plants. The most valuable 
repellant seems to be a spray of arsenate of lead 3 to 5 pounds per 
barrel. This not only repels the beetles better than any other 
substance tested by Dr. Headlee but also kills many which are 
forced to feed upon it. Arsenite of lime and zinc arsenite are 
both recommended by Dr. Chittenden, (I.e.) to be used as is the 
lead arsenate, either with or without Bordeaux mixture. Most 
evidence now available indicates that these poisons will pro- 
tect the vines to a rather limited extent and too much reliance 
must not be placed upon them. They are of value when used in 
connection with the cultural methods outlined. The problem 
of cucumber beetle control is one which needs more investigation, 
in spite of the fact that the insect has long been known. 

Various repellants, such as kerosene, turpentine, naphthalene 
or moth balls, and other similar odoriferous substances, have 
been strongly recommended, but careful tests have not demon- 
strated their efficiency. 

It is evident that the cleaning up of vines as soon as the crop 
can be gathered and the destruction of all refuse will deprive the 
beetles of food in the fall and force them to seek other hibernating 
places, thus increasing the mortality. 

The spotted cucumber-beetle, Diabrotica 12-punctata Oliv., 
is found almost always with the striped beetle and injures the 
plants in the same way. A full account of it will be found in the 
chapter dealing with insects affecting the corn plant. 



344 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



The Melon-aphis * 

Just as the vines commence to run, a plant will be found here 
and there with the foliage curled up and wilting and within will be 
found masses of the greenish " melon lice," which have caused the 
injury by their many beaks sucking out the sap of the plant. If 
allowed to multiply unchecked and their natural enemies do not 
prevent their increase, they will sometimes become so abundant 




Fig 290. — The melon aphis (Aphis gossypii Glov.): a, winged female; aa,, 
enlarged antenna of same; ab, dark female, side view, sucking juice 
from leaf; b, young nymph; c, last stage of nymph of winged form; d, 
wingless female — greatly enlarged. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

as to completely ruin a whole crop just as the melons are com- 
mencing to ripen. It is one of the worst pests of cucurbs and one 
which requires constant vigilance on the part of the grower. 

The aphids are to be found on various weeds in early spring 
and appear on cucurbs soon after they start growth. Both winged 
and wingless females occur throughout the year. The wingless 

* Aphis gossypii Glover. Family Aphididce. See F. H. Chittenden, 
Farmers' Bulletin 914, U. S. Dept. Agr. ; also C E. Sanborn, Bulletin 98, 
Oklahoma Agr. Exp. Sta., and C. E. Dursh, Bulletin 174, Illinois Agr. Exp. 

Sta. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MELONS, CUCUMBERS, Etc. 345 

form is about one-fifteenth inch long and varies from light yellow 
or tan colored to deep olive-green or deep green which appears 
almost blackish, the abdomen being always more or less mottled. 
The rather long, tapering honey-tubes are jet-black, and the legs 
and antennse pale whitish-yellow. The young nymphs always 
show a distinct yellowish-brown or pale salmon-colored area just 
in front of the honey-tubes and a dark transverse band between 
them. The nymphs of the last stage, in which the wing pads are 
visible, are marked on the back with little flecks of silvery white, 
waxy bloom. The winged female is about the same length and the 
wings expand one-fifth to one-quarter inch. The color varies as 
in the wingless form, but there are black spots along the sides 
of the abdomen, and the head and thorax are dark as shown in 
the above figure. 

The melon-aphis is found throughout the country southward 
through Central America, and though it often does serious damage 
in the North it is worse in the South. It has a long list of food 
plants, among the crops injured by it being all the cucurbs, cotton, 
okra, orange, and its occasional food-plants include many others, 
as it is found on a long list of weeds, most abundantly on shep- 
herd's purse and pepper-grass, upon which it multiplies in early 
spring and probably passes the winter. 

Life History. — The life history is much the same as that of most 
of our common aphids, though of some phases we are still in 
ignorance in spite of the most careful study. The females give 
birth to from four to ten aphids a day, depending upon the tem- 
perature and food supply, and these become full grown in from six 
to eight days. As the affected leaf becomes non-succulent the 
aphids migrate to another leaf and often cluster on the terminal 
which is checked and stunted. As they become more numerous, 
winged forms migrate to other plants and within two weeks a 
colony of fift}^ or more will form the progeny of every one born 
by the immigrating female. Reproduction seems to go on this 
way throughout the year, being stopped only by the cold of win- 
ter, as far as has been observed. No true sexual forms or eggs, as 
are known to occur with other nearly related species, have been 
observed, and the viviparous forms have been found throughout 
the winter in Colorado and Texas. 



346 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Enemies. — Fortunately the melon-aphis is subject to the unre- 
mitting attack of many insect enemies, the list including some 
thirty-five species. Among the more important are the common 




Fig. 291. — Melon aphids on cotton leaf which have been killed by parasites. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MELONS, CUCUMBERS, Etc. 347 

ladybird-beetles and their larvae, of which the convergent lady- 
bird,* the nine-spotted ladybird, f and the spotted ladybird, t 
shown in Figs 1-5, are among the most effective, and the maggots 
of various common syrphiis-flies, and the aphis-hons.§ Even 
more beneficial are the little parasitic flies whose larvae live within 
the maggots and destroy myriads of them with incredible swift- 
ness. The most common of these H are the same as the most 
common parasite of the green bug (Fig 120), and they often destroy 
the aphids over a whole field in a few days. They are most effect- 
ive in bright, warm weather, when they reproduce most rapidly, 
but in cool, moist weather they reproduce but slowly, and if such 
a summer follows similar weather conditions during the spring, the 
aphids multiply rapidly without a corresponding increase of their 
enemies and serious damage results. Inasmuch as these same 
enemies attack the cabbage-aphis, Professor C. E. Sanborn* has 
suggested that the cabbage-aphis might be encouraged to multiply 
on crops planted near melons or cucumbers, so that an abundance 
of parasites and insect enemies might be in readiness to attack the 
melon-aphis when it appears. This might be done by planting 
kale, rape, or wild mustard in the fall, upon which the cabbage- 
aphids will pass the winter and will multiply in early spring. 
This trap crop should be planted in rows around the prospective 
melon-field, and if the latter be large, rows should be planted 
through it. If the kale does not soon become infested with the 
cabbage-aphis, transport some from the nearest cabbage-patch. 
The ladybirds and parasites multiply rapidly with plenty of the 
cabbage-aphids for food, and as soon as the food supply becomes 
scarce they are forced to migrate and will search out any colonies 
of melon-aphids. This method has not come into general use. 

Control. — The most important factor in the control of this, 
as well as many other aphids, is constant watchfulness, inspect- 
ing the plants frequently and destroying badly infested individual 
plants and treating small areas before the pest becomes spread 
throughout the crop. 

* Hippodarnia convergens Guer. 
t Coccinella 9-notata Herbst. 

X Megilla maculata DeG. Family Coccinellidce. 

§ Family Chrysopidce. 

^ Lysiphlebus testaceipes Cress. Family Braconidoe. 

* See Bulletin 89, Texas Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 44. 



348 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

Where a few young plants are affected or before the leaves have 
become badly curled, the aphids may be destroyed by spraying 
with kerosene emulsion, containing 5 to 8 per cent kerosene, 
whale-oil soap, 1 pound to 5 gallons of water, or tobacco extracts, 
the latter having given best results in recent tests. Emulsion 
must be carefully made or burning will result. The aphids must 
be hit to destroy them, and it is necessary to use an underspray 
nozzle (page 73), or to turn the vines over and then return them, 
so that all the insects may be covered. After the foliage is well 
curled it is practically impossible to reach the aphids by spraying. 

Fumigation with carbon bisulphide and tobacco preparations 
has been extensively tested and recommended. It has not been 
found practical on a large scale and there has been some tendency 
to injure the plants in the process, both by the action of the 
fumes and by the handling necessary to get the larger vines under 
the fumigating frames. For this reason it is now considered of 
doubtful value under any circumstances and is not recommended. 

If the vines are watched carefully and sprayed with " Black- 
leaf 40 " at the first appearance of the plant-lice, the matter of 
control will be found to be relatively simple, and this, along with 
the cultural methods suggested, is the only treatment that will be 
found practical for the growers generally. Other spray solutions, 
or mixtures such as kerosene emulsion or whale-oil soap, may, 
of course, be substituted for the tobacco with about the same 
results. 

The Squash-bug * 

About the time the vines begin to run a wilted leaf is found 
here and there which examination shows to be due to the common 
brownish-black squash-bug. If search be made in early morning, 
the bugs will usually be found secreted under clods of earth, or 
whatever rubbish may be near the vines. They are about three- 
quarters inch long, and too well-known to need other description. 

Life History. — For the next month or six weeks the females 

deposit their eggs, mostly on the under sides of the leaves. They 

are oval, about one-sixteenth inch long, laid in irregularly 

shaped clusters. When newly laid they are pale yellow-brown, 

* Anasa tristis DeG. Family CoreidcB. See Weed and Conradi, Bulletin 
89, N. H. Agr. Exp. Sta.; F. H. Chittenden, Circular 39, Div. Ent., U. S. 
Dept. Agr. 




Fig. 292.^ — Squash-bugs and nymphs at work on young plaui — niuural size. 

349 



350 INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MELONS, CUCUMBERS, Etc. 



but this soon grows darker, so that the stage of their development 
may be told by the color. In from six to fifteen days, depending 

upon the temperature, the 
eggs hatch. The young 
nymphs are brilliantly col- 
ored, the antennse and legs 
being bright crimson, the 
head and anterior thorax a 
lighter crimson, and the pos- 
terior thorax and abdomen a 
bright green, but in a little 
while the crimson changes to 
a jet black. The young bugs 
remain near each other, suck- 
ing the juices from the foli- 
age and soon causing the 
leaves to wither. During 
their growth, which requires 
four to five weeks, they 
moult some five times. The 
adult bugs appear in August, 
but in the North they neither mate nor lay eggs that season, but 
feed until frosts blacken the leaves, when they disappear into winter 




Fig. 293. — Eggs of the sq\iash-bug — en- 
larged. (Photo by R. I. Smith.) 




Fig. 294. — The squash-bug; a, ma- 
ture female; b, side view of head 
showing beak; c, abdominal seg- 
ments of male; d, same of female; 
a, twice natural size; b, c, d, more 
enlarged. (After Chittenden, U. S. 
Dept. Agr.) 



Fig. 295. — The squash-bug: adult at 
left, and different stages of nymphs 
— about 13^ times natural size. 
(Photo by Quaintance.) 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MELONS, CUCUMBERS, Etc. 351 

quarters, hibernating along the edge of woodlands, beneath leaves, 
under logs, boards or whatever shelter may be available. In 
the South there are probably two or three broods a year accord- 
ing to the latitude. 

Control. — The eggs are easily seen and should be picked off 
and destroyed. The adults cannot be killed by insecticides, but 
the nymphs may be destroyed by spraying with kerosene emulsion, 
or a mixture of " Black-leaf 40, " one to 400 with soap. The 
adult bugs may be readily trapped by placing small pieces of 
board or similar shelter near the vines, under which they will 
hide at night and from which they may be gathered in the early 
morning. Cucumbers and melons may be protected by planting 
early squash among them, as the bugs prefer the squash, from 
which they may be collected. Cleaning up the vines in the fall 
is evidently of importance in reducing the number which will 
hibernate 

The Squash Ladybird * 

Although almost all of the ladybird beetles are exceedingly 
beneficial, this species, with its near relative the bean-ladybird 




FiG.'^296. — The squash ladybird (Epilachna boreah's Fab.): a, larva; b, pupa; 
c, adult beetle — three times natural size; d, egg — four times natural 
size; e, surface of egg highly magnified. (After Chittenden, U. S. 
Dept. Agr.) 

are the exceptions which prove the rule, being the only injurious 

forms with which we have to contend. Both the beetles and larvae 

feed on the foliage of various cucurbs, but prefer that of the squash. 

It is an Eastern species, not being injurious west of the Mississippi 

* Epilachna borealis Fab. Family Coccinellidce. See F. H. Chittenden, 
Bulletin 19, n. s., Div. Ent., U. S. Dept. Agr.; J. B. Smith, Bulletin 94, N. J. 
Agr. Exp. Sta. 



352 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



and being most troublesome in the Middle Atlantic States. The 
beetle is nearly hemispherical in shape, slightly oval, about one- 
third inch long, yellowish or reddish-brown, marked with seven 
black spots on each wing-cover and four smaller ones on the 
thorax as shown in Fig. 296. 

Life History. — The life history, as given by Dr. Chittenden for 
the District of Columbia and northward, is as follows: " The 
insect hibernates in the adult condition imder bark or other 
convenient shelter and appears abroad sometime in May or 
June. Egg deposition has been observed in the latter part of 

June, and there is evidence that 
the eggs are deposited also much 
later." The eggs are about three- 
tenths inch long, elongate oval 
of a yellow color, and laid in irreg- 
ular clusters of from 12 to 50. 
" They hatch in from six to nine 
days, and the larvae begin to feed 
at once on the leaves, causing 
them to wither and die." The 
larva is yellow, with six rows of 
black branching spines, and is 
about one-half inch long when 
grown. "The larva attains full 
development in from two to four 
weeks,ceases f eeding,and attaches 
itself by its anal extremity to 
a leaf, and next day sheds its 
larval skin, which is pushed down 
toward the end of the body, when the pupa stage is assumed. The 
larva matures anytime from the middle of July to near the middle 
of September. In the pupa state the insect remains from six to 
nine days, when the skin separates down the back and the perfect 
beetle emerges, the new brood appearing as early as the last of 
July. After feeding for some time the beetles disappear for hiber- 
nation, . . . beginning about the middle of September." The 
adults have the habit of marking out a circular area of the leaf, 
which seems to cause the tissue to wilt, and then feeding within 




Fig. 297. — Work of the squash lady- 
bird — greatly reduced. (After W 
E. Britton.) 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MELONS, CUCUMBERS, Etc. 353 



this area. The larvae are to be found feeding on the under surface of 
the foHage in July and August. 

Control. — Usually hand picking the beetles and eggs will 
control the pest, but if abundant it may be readily destroyed by 
spraying or dusting with arsenicals. 

The Squash-vine Borer * 

In many localities the most serious pest of squash is the 
Squash-vine Borer, and although other cucurbs are sometimes 
injured, they are relatively free from attack if squash or pumpkins 




Fig. 298. — The squash-vine borer {Melittia satyriniformis Hbn.): a, male 
moth; b, female with wings folded at rest; c, eggs shown on bit of stem; 
d, full-grown larva in vine; e, pupa; /, pupal cell — all one-third larger 
than natural size. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

are present. The larvse bore in the stems, causing them to rot 
where affected, so that they break off and the plant wilts and dies. 
The presence of the borer is indicated by the coarse yellowish 
excrement which it forces from its burrow and which is found 
on the ground beneath, and by the sudden wilting of the leaves. 
Injury is most severe at the base of the vine, which gradually 
decays, so that it is severed and the whole plant dies. A half- 
dozen or more larvae are often found in a single stem, and as many 
as forty have been taken from one vine, the larvae attacking all 
parts of the vine and even the petioles and large ribs of the leaves 
when abundant. Injury is worst on Hubbard, marrow, cymlings 
and late varieties of squash. 

* Melittia satyriniformis Hbn. Family Sesiidce. Farmers' Bulletin 668, 
U. S. Dept. Agr. 



354 INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MELONS, CUCUMBERS, Etc. 



The adult is one of the clear-winged moths with a wing expanse 
of about li inches, the fore- wings being opaque, dark ohve 
green in color, with a metallic lustre and a fringe of brownish 
black. The hind-wings are transparent, with a bluish reflection, 
and the veins and marginal fringe black. The abdomen is marked 
with orange, or red, black and bronze, and the legs are bright 
orange, with tarsi black with white bands. The species occurs 
throughout the states east of the Rockies and southward into 
Central and South America. 




Fig. 299. — A squash stem cut open showing borers within. (Photo 
by Quaintance.) 

Life History. — The moths appear soon after their food-plants 
start growth, from mid-April along the Gulf Coast to June 1st, 
in New Jersey, and late June or early July in Connecticut. They 
fly only in the daytime, and their clear wings and brightly marked 
bodies give them a close resemblance to large wasps. The eggs 
are laid on all parts of the plant, but chiefly on the stems, par- 
ticularly near the base. The oval egg is of a dull red color and 
about one-twenty-fifth inch long. The moth deposits her eggs 
singly, and one individual has been observed to lay as many as 
212. They hatch in one or two weeks. The young larva enters 
the main stem and tunnels through it, and often enters the leaf- 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MELONS, CUCUMBERS, Etc. 355 

petioles branching from it. It is a soft, stout, whitish caterpillar, 
with a small black head, and about one inch long when full grown. 
The larvae reach maturity in about four weeks and then enter 
the earth, where they make tough silken cocoons, coated with 
particles of earth, an inch or two below the surface. In the 
South the larvae transform to pupae from which a second generation 
of moths emerges in late July, but in the North the larvae hibernate 
in the cocoons over winter, and transform the next spring. The 
pupa is about five-eighths inch long, dark brown, and with a 
horn-like process on the head between the eyes. By the aid 
of this the pupa cuts open one end of the cocoon and with the 
hook-like spines on the abdomen wriggles to the surface of the 
earth before transforming to the moth. As indicated, there is 
but one generation in the North, a partial second brood in the 
latitude of New Jersey and the District of Columbia, and two 
full generations in the South. 

Control. — ^As the larvas work within the vines, insecticide 
treatment is useless, and the pest must be controlled by methods 
of culture. 

Obviously the vines should be raked up and destroyed as 
soon as the crop is gathered, so as to destroy all of the borers 
within them. As the larvae or pupae hibernate over winter in 
the soil, it has been found that frequent light harrowing in the 
fall will bring them to the surface, and that deep plowing in the 
early spring will then bury any surviving so that the moths 
cannot emerge. Rotation of the crop will evidently decrease the 
number of moths. Where the pest is abundant late squash may 
be protected by planting rows of early summer squashes as soon 
as possible. These will attract the moths so that there will be 
relatively few eggs deposited on the main crop planted later. As 
soon as the early crop is gathered, or as soon as it becomes well 
infested, if it is used only for a trap, the vines should be raked 
up and burned so as to destroy all eggs and larvae. It is well 
to cover the vines with earth one or two feet from the base so 
as to induce the growth of secondary roots, which will support 
the plant in case the vine is severed lower down. The old- 
fashioned method of shtting the vines with a knife and thus 
killing the borers is about the only means of destroying them 
after they have become established. The position of a borer may 



356 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



be detected by the excrement extruded from its burrow, 
and if the wound be covered with moist earth it will assist the 
healing. Destroy the parent moths whenever they are seen. 




Fig. 300. — The pickle worm (Diaphania nitidalis Cramer) : larva, pupa, and 
adult — all enlarged. (Photos by Quaintance.) 

The Pickle Worm * 

The pickle worm is so called because it was first noted as 

injuring cucumbers grown for pickling, but in the Gulf States, 

where it is most injurious it is more commonly a pest of melons, 

* Diaphania nitidalis Cramer. Family PyraustidcE. See A. L. Quaint- 
ance, Bulletin 54, Ga. Agr. Exp. Sta., R.I. Smith, Bulletin 214, N. C. Agr. 
Exp. Sta. 



. INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MELONS, CUCUMBERS, Etc 357 

and, with the following species, with which it is often confused, 
is often known as the " melon worm." Injury in the Middle 
States occurs only periodically, though it has been noted in 
Illinois and southern Michigan, but in the Gulf States it is always 
a serious pest of all the cucurbs, destroying the blossoms, mining 
the stems, and boring into the ripening fruit. 

The moth has a wing expanse of about Ij inches, is yellowish- 
brown with a purplish iridescence, and is readily recognized by 
an irregular yellowish transparent spot on the middle of the 
fore-wings, and the basal half of the hind-wings of the same color. 
The abdomen terminates in a conspicuous brush of large blackish 
scales. 

Life History. — The moths emerge in late spring and deposit 
the eggs either singly or in clusters of 3 to 8 on the flowers, buds, 
or tender terminals. The yellowish-white egg is about one- 
thirtieth inch long, and rather elliptical. The first larvae 
are to be found in Georgia by the middle of June. The young 
larvse which hatch from eggs laid on the terminals bore into 
stems and leaves and later often tunnel out the vines like the 
squash-vine borer. Those' from eggs laid on the blossoms usu- 
ally feed in the blossoms, and a half-dozen may often be found 
feeding in single squash blossoms, for which they seem to 
have a decided preference. As they grow older the larvse 
warder from one plant to another; often boring into several 
fruits. The older larvae bore into the fruit, the excrement being 
pushed out from the orifice and later accumulating in the cavity 
within. A single larva boring into the rind will do sufficient 
injury to start decay and ruin the fruit, and often a half- 
dozen or more will be found in a single melon. Until half grown 
the larvae are marked with transverse rows of black spots. The 
full-grown larva is about three-quarters inch long, greenish 
or yellowish-green, with head and prothoracic shield brown. 
The larva reaches maturity in about two weeks, when a thin 
silken cocoon is made in the fold of a leaf in which the pupal 
stage is assumed, which occupies about a week. The pupa is 
one-haK to one inch long, brown, with wing and leg sheaths 
lighter, and the tip of the abdomen bears a group of short curved 
spines which hold the pupa more securely in the cocoon. During 



358 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



July and August the complete life cycle requires about four weeks 
in Georgia, and at least three definite generations have been 
recognized, the injury by the larvae being most severe in July and 
August, evidently by the second generation. The winter is passed 
in the pupal stage in the foliage or trash remaining on the field. 
Control. — As injury is worst in late summer, early plantings and 
early-maturing varieties are but little injured. The thorough de- 
struction of the vines, foliage, and 
trash on the field after the crop is 
secured is of the utmost import- 
ance in controlling this as well as 
other pests of cu curbs, and may 
probably be accomplished with this 
species by deeply plowing under the 
refuse. Professor A. L. Quaint- 
ance, to whom we are indebted for 
our knowledge of this pest, has 
found that the moths greatly prefer 
to oviposit on squash and that it 
may be successfully used as a trap 
crop for the protection of other cu- 
curbs. Rows of summer squash 
should be planted through the cu- 
cumber or melon fields as early as 
possible, the rows being planted 
every two weeks so there will be 
flowers through July. The squash 
bloom, with the contained larvae, 

T. o/M CI 1 ri ■ e L J must be collected and destroyed at 

Fig. 301. — Squasli flower infested . , ^^ , • i 

with pickle worms. (Photo by frequent mtervals. otherwise the 
Quaintance.) squash will merely augment the in- 

jury, as the larvae will migrate to the crop. Careful tests of this 
method showed almost complete protection to muskmelons. The 
use of arsenicals has been of little value against this pest as far as 
tested, but as they should be applied to control the next species, 
may be of some incidental value. 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MELONS, CUCUMBERS, Etc. 359 



The Melon Caterpillar * 

This species is very similar to the last in life history and habits 
and is very commonly confused with it. It seems to be commonly 




Fig. 302. — Pickle worms at work on a cucumber. (Photo by Quaintance.) 

injurious only in the Gulf States, though the moths have been taken 
from Canada to Central America and injury has been seen in Kansas. 
The moth is a beautiful insect with wings of a pearly iridescent 
whiteness, bordered with brown- 
ish-black and expanding about 
an inch. The anterior half of 
the thorax and head is the same 
color as the wing border, while 
the abdomen is white, tinged with 
brownish toward the tip, which is 
surmounted by a brush of long 
dark scales. The larviE are very 
similar to those of the pickle 
worm, and the life history so far 
as ascertained seems to be prac- 
tically the same. The essential difference in the habits of this 
species is that the young larvae very commonly feed on the 
foliage. Later on they mine into the stems and fruit and are 
readily confused with those of the last species. 

Control. — The fact that the young larvae feed on the foliage 
makes it possible fco destroy them with arsenicals, and by 

* Diaphania hyalinata Linn. Family Pyraustidce. See A. L. Quaintance, 
Bulletin 45, Geo. Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 42; R. I. Smith, Bulletin 214, N. C. 
Agr. Exp. Sta. 




Fig. 303. — The melon-worm moth 
{Diaphania hyalinita Linn.) — en- 
larged. (Photo by Quaintance.) 



360 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

spraying the young foliage with arsenate of lead 3 pounds to the 
barrel, as advised for the striped cucumber-beetle, they should 



Fiu. 304. — The melon-worm — enlargad. (Photo by R. I. Smith.) 

be readily controlled. The cultural methods advised for the con- 
trol of the last epecies will of course be equally applicable for this. 



CHAPTER XIX 

MISCELLANEOUS GARDEN INSECTS 

The Pale-striped Flea-beetle * 

Enormous numbers of the Pale-striped Flea-beetles often 
appear in late June or early July and nearly ruin the young 
crops they may attack before being brought under control. Such 
outbreaks occur only periodically, so that usually the grower is 





Fig. 305. — The pale-striped flea-beetle (Systena blanda Mels.): a, larva; 
b, beetle; c. eggs; d, sculpture of egg; e, anal segrnent of larva from 
side; /, same from above; a, d, six times natural size; e, f, more en- 
laiged; g, the banded flea-beetle {Systena tceniata Say) — six times natural 
size. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

unprepared to cope with them, which is true of the appearance 
of many of our worst insect pests. These flea-beetles are almost 
omnivorous as regards food, for although particularly injurious 
to corn and tomatoes, they have also injured beans, beets, pota- 
toes, egg-plant, carrots, melons and other cucurbs, turnips and 
other crucifers, strawberry, cotton, oats, peanuts, pear foliage, etc., 

* Systena bianda Mels. Family Chrysomelidoe. See F. H. Chittenden 
Bulletin, 23, n. s., Div. Ent., U. "S. Dept. Agr., p. 22; S. A. Forbes, 18th 
Report State Ent., 111., p. 21. 

361 



GARDEN PLANT-LICE 




Fig. 306. — General recommendations and information concerning plant-lice 
of the garden, as issued by the Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr 

362 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MISCELLANEOUS CROPS 363 

and many common weeds, so that it may be safely said that when 
abundant they will attack almost any crop at hand. The species 
seems to occur practically throughout the United States, but injury 
has been most common in the Middle States east of the plains. 

The beetle is about one-eighth inch long, cream-colored, with 
the wing-covers marked with three stripes of dull light-brown, 
and the eyes and abdomen are black. A nearly related species, 
the banded flea-beetle,* is very similar in appearance, the dark 
stripes being expanded until it is a poHshed black with two white 
stripes (Fig. 3056), and the two species have until recently been 
commonly considered as identical. They are similar in Hfe 
history and habits so far as known, and may be considered as 
the same for practical purposes. 

Life History . . — Very little is known of the hfe history. The 
beetles usually appear in late June and early July, coming out in 
enormous numbers, gnawing small holes in the fohage of the 
plants attacked, so that when abundant they completely defoliate 
the plant in two or three days and often necessitate replanting. 

Control. — The destruction of the weeds on which the larvae 
develop is of obvious importance, and it would be well to plow 
under deeply any fields grown up in weeds during late summer. 
Bordeaux mixture is possibly the best repellant for these beetles, 
though they will be driven off by covering the plants with any 
dust which thoroughly coats the foliage. Usually the best method 
will be to spray the plants thoroughly with Bordeaux mixture 
containing 3 pounds of arsenate of lead or one-third pound Paris 
green per barrel. All parts of the fohage must be thoroughly 
coated. Good success has also attended dusting the plants with 
Paris green and flour and by spraying the beetles with kerosene 
emulsion. Powdered arsenate of lead dusted over the fohage 
while the dew is on would probably prove effective, or it might 
be sprayed at the rate of 3 to 5 pounds to the barrel. 

The Garden Webworm f 

The term garden webworm is possibly a misnomer, for although 
these httle caterpillars frequently do more or less injury to various 

* Systena tceniata Say. 

^ Loxostege similalis Gn. Family Ptjraustidoe. See C. V. Riley, Report 
U. S. Comm. Agr. for 1885, p. 265; Sanderson, Bulletin 57, Bureau of Ento- 
mology, U. S. Dept. Agr., p. 11. 



364 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



garden crops when they become overabundant and migrate to 
them from the weeds on which they normally feed, and occasionally 
do some damage to sugar beets, they are best known as a pest of 
corn and cotton. Though the species occurs throughout the 
United States and south to South America, it has been most 
injurious from Nebraska southward and east to Mississippi and 
Illinois. The larvae feed normally on the pigweed or careless 
weed {Amaranthus spp.) from which they sometimes receive the 
local name of "careless worm," and only when they become 
overabundant on these weeds do they usually increase sufficiently 
to migrate from them and attack crops. 

The moth is a yellowish, buff or grayish-brown color, marked 
as shown in Fig. 307, and with a wing expanse of about three- 
quarters of an inch. The larva also varies in color from pale 
and greenish-yellow to dark yellow, and is marked with numerous 
black tubercles as shown in Fig. 307, b, c. 

Life History. — The hibernating habits are not known, but from 
analogy with the beet webworm, and the appearance of the 

moths, it seems 



probable that the 
winter is passed by 
the larvae or pupae 
in the soil. The 
moths appear in 
Texas by mid-April 
and in central Illi- 
nois in late May 

Fig. 307. — The garden webworm (Loxostege simi- and early June. 

Mis Gn.):a, male moth; b, c larva?; d anal rpi p „pii^^is!h pp-o-s 

segment of same; e, abdominal segment of same ^'^^ yellowisn eggs 

from side; /, pupa; g, tip of abdomen of same; are laid on the foli- 

a, b, c, f, somewhat enlarged; d, e, g, more en- . ,, + u^„ 

larged. (After Riley and Chittenden, U. S. Dept. age m small patches 

Agr.) of from 8 to 20 and 

in Texas hatch in three or four days. The larvae of the first 
generations feed on weeds or alfalfa, where it is grown, and then 
migrate to corn and cotton or garden truck, the former crops 
being attacked when six or eight inches high. In feeding the 
caterpillars spin a fine web, which gradually envelopes the plant, 
of which nothing is left but the skeletons of the leaves when the 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MISCELLANEOUS CROPS 365 



larvae are abundant. The larvae become full grown in about 
three weeks in summer, when they descend to the soil and pupate 
in small silken cells on or just below the surface. The moths 
emerge about eight days later, so that in midsummer the com- 
plete hfe cycle -occupies about a month. In Texas there are 
probably five generations a year, and in Nebraska and IlUnois 
three or four generations. 

Control. — The plowing of infested land in late fall or winter, 
or thorough disking of alfalfa will be found largety to control the 
pest. Where it appears on cultivated crops it may be readily 
destroyed by at once spraying or dusting with arsenate of lead. 
The destruction of the weeds upon which it feeds is obviously 
important in preventing the undue multiphcation of the pest. 

The Rhubarb Curculio * 

Rhubarb is but little troubled with insect pests, but occa- 
sionally the stalks are found with numerous punctures from 




Fig. 308. — -The rhubarb curculio (Lixus concavus Say): a, beetle; h, egg; 
c, newly hatched larva; d, full grown larva; e, pupa; /, back view of last 
abdominal segment of pupa — all about twice natural size. (After Chit- 
tenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

which the juice exudes. This has been caused by the feeding 

and oviposition of a large rusty-brown snout-beetle, which is 

usually found on the affected plants. It is about three-quarters 

* Lixus concavus Say. Family Curculionidoe. See F. H. Chittenden, 
Bulletin 23, n. s., Division of Entomology, p. 61. 



366 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



inch long, and will be readily recognized from Fig. 308 The 
beetles hibernate over winter and feed on dock, in the stalks of 
which the eggs are laid in May. Although eggs are laid in rhu- 
barb, they fail to hatch or the young larvse die. The grubs 
become full grown by midsummer and the beetles emerge in late 
summer and feed a little before entering hibernation. 

Control. — As the beetles are sluggish and readily found, they 
may be easily destroyed by handpicking. Dock plants near the 
rhubarb patch should be pulled and destroyed in early summer 
after the beetles have finished laying their eggs, 

The Celery Caterpillar * 

Everyone who grows celery, parsley or carrots is famihar 
with the large, black-striped, green caterpillar which feeds on 




Fig. 309. — The celery caterpillar (Papilio polyxenes Fab.) : a, full grown larva, 
side view; b, front view of head showing extended osmateria; c, male 
butterfly; d, egg; e, young larva; /, suspended chrysalis — about natural 
size except d. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

their foliage, as it is probably the most common pest of those 
plants in all parts of the country, ragging the foliage and attack- 
ing the blossoms and undeveloped seeds. It is the larva of our 
most common black swallowtail butterfly, shown natural size in 
Fig. 309. The wings of the male are velvety black with bands 
* Papilio polyxenes Fab. Family Papilionidoe. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MISCELLANEOUS CROPS 367 

of yellow spots. On the inner angle of the hind-wing is a well- 
marked eyespot, and the hind-wing terminates in a distinct 
"tail." The female is somewhat larger, the inner row of yellow 
spots is wanting, and the hind-wings are covered with pale-blue 
scales on the posterior half. There is considerable variation, 
however, in the color of both sexes. 

Life History. — In the North the winter is passed in the chrys- 
alis stage and the butterflies appear in May in New England, 
while in the far South the butterflies hibernate over winter and 
appear in March or April. The eggs are laid on the fohage and 
are of a globular form, about one-twenty-fifth inch in diameter, 
at first pale honey-yellow, but later reddish-brown. The eggs 
hatch in from four to nine days. The young larvae are quite 
dissimilar from the older stages, being nearly black with a white 
band around the middle of the body (Fig. 309e). The larvae 
feed exclusively on umbelliferous plants, including besides those 
mentioned, caraway, fennel, parsnip, dill, wild carrot, wild pars- 
nip, and other weeds of this family. The full-grown larva is 
shown, natural size, in Fig. 309, a. It is bright green, sometimes 
yellowish, and marked with rings and spots of velvety black as 
illustrated. Just back of the pro thorax is a pair of membranous 
yellow horns called osmateria, which give off a pecuHar pungent 
odor, which is quite disagreeable and evidently aids in frighten- 
ing away enemies. These osmateria are soft, retractile organs, 
which are drawn back between the segments and are extruded 
only when the larva is disturbed. 

In the far South the larva will become grown in ten days, 
but in the North it requires three to four weeks. The cater- 
pillar then attaches itself to some part of the plant by the anal 
prolegs, and fastens a strong loop of silk around the thorax, and 
sheds its skin, leaving the chrysahs or pupa firmly attached ;to 
the leaf or stem as shown in Fig. 309, /. The chrysahs is a dull 
gray color marked with black and brown and about 114 inches 
long. In from ten days to two weeks the butterfly emerges 
from the chrysahs. Thus the complete life cycle may be passed 
in twenty-two days in the South to eight weeks in the North. 
In the North there are but two generations a year, while in the 
South there are probably three or four. 

Control. — The caterpillars are so readily seen, and if not seen 
they soon reveal their presence by the peculiar odor when dis- 



368 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

turbed, that they may usually be picked off and crushed, and so 
rarely become sufficiently numerous to warrant other treatment. 
They may be readily controlled by spraying or dusting with 
arsenicals. 

The Celery Looper * 

This species is very closely related to the cabbage looper 
and occurs throughout the Northern States east of the Rocky 
Mountains. According to Forbes and Hart it is more common 
than the cabbage looper in Illinois, where it is a serious pest of 
celery and has been reared on sugar-beet, but elsewhere it is 
not as common. 

The moth has a wing expanse of about two inches, the fore- 
wings being purplish brown with darker shades of velvety brown 




Fig. 310. — The celery looper (Antogragha simplex Guen.): male moth and 
larva — somewhat enlarged. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr ) 

and with a prominent silvery white discal spot, while the hind- 
wings are yellowish, strongly banded with dark fuscous. The 
caterpillar or larva is similar to that of the cabbage looper, but 
the spiracles are surrounded with black rings, while in the 
cabbage looper these rings are indistinct or wanting. 

Forbes and Hart believe that there are three broods in a 
year. "The caterpillars of the first generation of the year hatch 
late in May and get their growth late in June or early in July. 
The life of the second generation extends from the first part 
of July to the middle of September, and the third begins to issue 
from the egg early in October. This brood hibernates about 
half grown, attaining full size during the latter part of April." 

Control. — No accounts of experiments in control are on record, 

but doubtless the same measures as used against the cabbage 

looper will be found applicable. 

* Antographa simplex Guen. Family Noctuidoe. See Chittenden, Bulle- 
tin 33, Division of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr., p. 73. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MISCELLANEOUS CROPS 369 



The Carrot-beetle * 

The Carrot-beetle is a native species which has been particu- 
larly injurious to carrots along the Atlantic Coast from Long 
Island through the Gulf States. The species occurs, however, 
very generally throughout the country as far north as central 
Indiana, and on the Pacific coast. It has a considerable number 
of food-plants; in Louisiana and Mississippi it has injured the corn 
crop, the beetles cutting the corn just above the roots; in Illinois 
the beetles injured sunflowers 



and sweet potatoes; in Indiana 
they attacked carrots, celery and 
and parsnips; in Texas they 
have injured potatoes and 
shrubs and vegetables of various 
kinds; and in Nebraska they 
have damaged sugar-beets. 

The damage is done entirely 
by the adult beetles, which arc 
among the smaller of the May- 
beetles or June-bugs, measure 
one-half to five-eighths of an 
inch long, and are from reddish- 
brown to nearly black in color. 
The beetles gouge into the roots or stems just below the surface 
of the soil, often ruining the root for market without injuring the 
top. The injury may occur by hibernated beetles in the spring 
from April to June or by newly transformed individuals in late 
summer or autumn. 

The Ufe history has not been studied, but is probably very 
similar to that of Lachnosterna. 

Control. — No very satisfactory means of control have been 

tried in a practical way. It is stated that lime scattered over 

infested fields has driven the beetles away. It is evident that 

after the crop is gathered infested fields should be pastured with 

hogs, if possible, or plowed deeply, and plowed again in the 

spring. Evidently further study of the habits of the pest is 

necessary before satisfactory means of control may be devised. 

* Ligyrus gibbosus DeG. Family Scaraboeidoe. See F. H. Chittenden, 
Bulletin 33, n. s., Div. Ent., U. S. Dept. Agr., p. 32, and W. P. Hayes, Journal 
Ec. Ent. Vol. 10, pp. 253-261, 1919. 




Fig. 311. — The carrot-ljectlc [Liijiirus 
gibbosus DeG.) — much enlarged. 
(After Forbes.) 



370 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



The Carrot Rust-fly * 

The Carrot Rust-fly is a European species, being a serious 
•pest of carrots in England and Germany, which has been known 
in Canada since 1885 and appeared in New York in 1901 and 
since then in New Hampshire. The larva or maggot which does 
the injury very much resembles the cheese maggot or skipper in 
general appearance, is a rather dark brown, and a little less than 
one-third inch long. The parent fly is about one-sixth inch 
long with a wing expanse of three-tenths inch, and is a dark 




Fig. 312.— -The carrot rust-fly (Psila rosae Fab.): "b, male fly; o, female flys, 
side view; a, antenna of male; h, full-grown larva from side; c, spiracle 
of same; a, anal extremity from the end; e, puparium; /, young larva; 
g, anal segment from the side — eight times natural size except a, c, d, g, 
more enlarged. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

blackish-green color, sparsely clothed with yellow hairs, and with 

pale yellow head and legs, except the eyes, which are black. 

"Attack on carrots is not difficult of recognition. The leaves 

of the young plants early in the spring turn reddish, and the 

roots are found to be blotched with rusty patches, particularly 

toward their tips. The roots when stored for winter, although 

not always manifesting any degree of injury on the outer surface, 

may at times be perforated in all directions by dirty brownish 

burrows, from which the whitish or yellowish larvae may be 

found sometimes projecting." Celery is also attacked, the larvae 

* Psila rosoe Fab. Family Psilidoe. See Chittenden, Bulletin 33, n. s. 
Division of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr., p. 26. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MISCELLANEOUS CROPS 371 

eating the thick part of the root when it is half grown, stunting 
the plant so as to make it worthless for market. The life history 
of the species does not seem to have been carefully observed, 
but from analogy is probably somewhat similar to that of the 
cabbage root-maggot, except that the maggots of the carrot 
rust-fly develop and transform on carrots in storage if the tem- 
perature be sufficient. 

Control. — Control measures as recommended for this insect 
have not proven of any great benefit so we must wait for addi- 
tional information before making definite suggestions. 

The Parsnip Webworm * 
The Parsnip Webworm is quite a common pest of the forming 




Fig. 313. — ^The parsnip webworm (Depressaria heracliana De G.): a, moth, 
b, c, larvae; d, pupa; e, anal extremity of pupa;/, umbel of parsnip webbed 
together by the larvse — natural size. (After Riley.) 

seed of the parsnip, but fortunately it seems to prefer wild carrot 
as a breeding plant. It is an imported species, occurring in north- 
ern Europe, which was first observed in this country in 1873 and 
since then has become generally distributed over the Northern 
States and Canada westward to the Mississippi, 

The moth is a grayish-buff or pale ochreous color, marked with 
fuscous, the wings expanding about three-quarters of an inch. 
The larva is a pale yellowish, greenish or bluish-gray, with con- 
spicuous black tubercles, the head and prothoracic shield black, 



* Depressaria heracliana DeG. Family (Ecophoridm. See C. V. Riley 
"Insect Life," Vol. I, p. 94. " 



372 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

and is about half an inch long when grown. The larvae web the 
flower-heads together until they are contracted into masses of 
web and excrement ( as shown in the illustration. "After the 
larvae have consumed the flowers and unripe seeds and become 
nearly full grown, they enter the hollow stems of the plant by 
burrowing their way inside, generally at the axils of the leaves, 
and then feed upon the soft, white lining of the interior. Here, 
inside the hollow stem, they change to the pupa state. The 
larvae are moderately gregarious. They will sometimes eat newly 
sown parsnips after the older plants originally attacked have 
been destroyed, in such cases eating the tender green leaves, while 
of the older plants they eat only the flower-heads and interior 
lining of the stems." The moths appear in late July and early 
August. 

Control. — Thorough spraying or dusting with arsenicals will 
destroy the caterpillars, according to Chittenden. If the flowers 
are destroyed before they are noticed, cut off and burn all infested 
stems before the moths emerge from the pupae. Obviously it will 
be important to avoid planting parsnips in or near waste places 
which have grown up in wild carrot. 

The Onion Thrips * 

The small yellowish "thrips" which chafe the epidermis from 
the green leaves, causing them to dry out, whiten and die, have 
become well known to onion growers in practically all parts of 
the United States where onions are raised extensively. It is a 
European insect, occurring in Germany and Russia, and has also 
been imported into the Bermudas. 

The adult thrips is about one-twenty-fifth of an inch long, of 
a pale yellow color, tinged with blackish. The general appear- 
ance, much enlarged, is shown in Fig. 314. The slender, elongate 
body bears two pairs of narrow, bristle-like wings which are of 
no value for flight. The fore-wing contains two-wing-veins, and 
the hind-wing but one, the posterior margin of both bearing a 

* Thrips tabaci Lind. Order Tlujsanoptera. See Quaintance, A. L., 
Bulletin 46, Fla. Agr. Exp. Sta., "The Strawberry Thrips and the Onion 
Thrips." Full account and Bibliography; Pergande, Th., "Insect Life," 
Vol. VII, pp. 292-295; Osborne-Mally, Bulletin 27, Iowa Agr. Exp. Sta., 
pp. 137-142; Sirrine, Bulletin 83, N. Y. Agr. Exp. Sta., pp. 680-683, Farmers' 
Bulletin 1007, U. S. D. A. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MISCELLANEOUS CROPS 373 

fringe of long hairs. When at rest the wings he together along 
the back. 

The thrips belong to a quite distinct order of insects, the 
Thysanoptera (or Physopoda), species of which are commonly 
found in the flowers of the rose and clover. The mouth-parts 
are quite different from those of any other order of insects, being 
intermediate between those of biting and sucking insects, the 
mandibles being reduced to bristle-like structures. Their man- 
ner of feeding does not seem to be clearly understood, though 




Fig. 314. — The onion thrips (Thrips iabaci Lind.) — very greatly enlarged. 
(Photo by Quaintance.) 

Professor Quaintance states that the onion thrips frequently 
rasps off and swallows pieces of leaf tissue. However, they are 
able to destroy the surface tissue of the leaf so that it wilts, 
and fields badly affected become blighted and white. . 

This species has quite a list of food-plants, cabbage and cauH- 
flower often being considerably injured. Among others may be 
mentioned turnip, kale, sweet clover, squash, cucumber, melon, 
parsley, tomato, and several common garden flowers and weeds. 

Life History. — The eggs are slightly less than .01 of an inch 
long — too small to be visible to the unaided eye — elongate, and 
curved somewhat kidney-shaped. They are laid singly just 
beneath the surface of the leaf and hatch in about four days. 



374 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

The young nymphs resemble the adults in shape, but are at 
first almost transparent in color and then a greenish-yellow. 
They are frequently found feeding in small groups. Both the 
young and adults have a pair of sharp spines at the tip of the 
abdomen which they use to drive away enemies by striking them 
quickly right and left. Two or three days after birth the skin is 
shed and another molt occurs five or six days later. With the 
third stage the wing-pads appear. This stage lasts four days, 
and during it the insects take no food and remain almost quiet, 
moving with difficulty. On onions the nymphs have been found 
mostly on the bulbs in the loose soil. With the next molt, the 
insect becomes mature and winged. Thus, the total fife cycle 
as observed by Professor Quaintance in Florida is about sixteen 
days. In Russia Dr. Lindeman found that a generation required 
forty-seven days. "In Florida there are probably no distinct 
broods, as all stages may be found at the same time. Allowing 
for the fife cycle at sixteen days, a large number of broods could 
occur during the year, but unfavorable conditions keep them 
reduced, except daring the spring and perhaps early summer (the 
worst injury occurring in May and June), so that it will prob- 
ably not happen that they will develop throughout a year accord- 
ing to their capabifities." 

Control. — The best methods of control, according to Dr. 
Chittenden, include clean farming and crop rotation as pre- 
ventive measures and spraying with nicotine sulphate as a direct 
method of kilfing the thrips. High pressure should be used in 
spraying and the spray should be directed downward so that it 
will be forced into the crevices between the leaves or stems, in 
which the thrips conceal themselves. 

The Imported Onion-maggot * 

The common white maggot which bores into the roots and 

bulbs, causing them to wilt and decay, is probably the most 

important insect pest of the onion. The present species is by far 

the most commonly injurious and is termed " imported" because 

it was early known as a pest in Europe and was imported into 

this country probably in colonial times. 

* Pegomyia ceparum Bouche. Family Anthomyiidoe. See same references 
as for cabbage-maggot. 




Fig. 315. — ^The imported onion-maggot (Pegomyia ceparum Bouch6) : a, 
adult; b, maggot; c, puparium; d, anal segment of maggot showing 
spiracles; e, head with mouth-parts — all very much enlarged; / and g 
show injury to young onions. (After J. B. Smith.) 



376 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

These maggots are the offspring of small flies, somewhat 
resembling small houseflies and very similar to those of the 
cabbage root-maggot.* The wings expand about three-eighths 
of an inch and the body is half that long. The male is gray with 
black bristles and hairs, the face is white with black hairs, there 
are three black lines between the wings, and the abdomen bears 
a row of black spots along the middle. The female is a little 
larger, incHned to dark yellowish, and with a yellowish face. 

Life History. — The flies appear in the spring by the time 
young onions are up and the eggs are deposited in the sheath 
and in the axils of the leaves, from two to six being placed upon 
a plant. The eggs are just perceptible to the eye, white, oval, 
and about one-twenty-fifth of an inch long. The young maggot 
works its way down from the sheath to the root, upon which it 
feeds until it is consumed, only the outer skin remaining, and 
often cuts off the plant completely. Another plant is then 
attacked and often several young plants are consumed before 
the maggot is fuU grown. Later in the season the maggots bore 
into the bulbs, a number of maggots usually being found in a 
single bulb and their presence being indicated by a slimy mass 
of soil at the entrace of the cavity. If such bulbs are not killed 
outright, they usually rot in storage. The first presence of the 
pest is indicated by the wilting of the young plants, and by the 
central leaves of the older plants yellowing and dying. 

The maggots become full grown about two weeks after hatch- 
ing and are then about three-eighths of an inch long. They are 
dull white, with the jaws appearing beneath the skin as a short 
black stripe at the pointed end of the body. The posterior end 
of the body is obtuse and is cut off obliquely, the margin of the 
last segment bearing a number of tubercles by which this species 
may be distinguished from the cabbage-root maggot. (See 
Slingerland, I.e.) 

The outer skin of the maggot now becomes hardened and 

within it the insect transforms to the pupa, which remains in the 

soil at the base of the plant for about two weeks, when the adult 

fly emerges. Two or three generations probably occur in the 

Northern States. Professor R. H. Pettit states that some of the 

* See Slingerland, Bulletin 78, Cornell Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 495, for characters 
distinguishing these two species. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MISCELLANEOUS CROPS 377 



flies hibernate while many of the pupae remain in the soil over 
winter and the flies issue from them in the spring. This com- 
phcates remedial measures. 

Control. — Liberal appUcations of commercial fertihzers such 
as nitrate of soda, which will assist to rapid growth, are of great 
value in overcoming injury by all root-feeding pests. Thorough 
culture is of value. Rotation of the onion plot to a point far 
distant from that of the previous year, the cleaning up of old 
beds, and plowing them deeply in the fall, will aid in the control. 
Pull up and destroy the young plants affected as soon as noticed, 
being careful to dig up the maggots with the roots. The appli- 




Hm 



Fig. 316. — The barjed-winged onion-maggot {Chcetopsis cenea Wied.) : a, 
larva, with spiracular opening highly magnified at left; h, puparium; 
c, adult fly — all enlarged. (After Riley and Howard, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

cation of carbolic emulsion as for the cabbage-root maggot has 
been advocated and will doubtless lessen the injury by repeUing 
the adult flies. 

A more recent method of control is based on the fact that 
the flies are on the wing and feeding for several days before they 
lay their eggs and that they may be attracted to sweet sub- 
stances. A poisoned syrup, sprinkled about the field and on 
weeds nearby, will attract the flies and kill large numbers before 
they lay their eggs. The syrup is poisoned as follows: 

One pint of syrup is mixed with a gallon of water and to this 

is added one-fifth ounce of sodium arsenite dissolved in a small 

quantity of hot water. This is sprinkled where it will do the 

most good at intervals of about a week.* 

* See Severin and Severin, Journal Econ. Ent., Vol. 8, pp. 342-350, 1915, 
and Howard, ibid. Vol. II, pp. 82-85, 1918. 



378 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

The Barred-winged Onion-maggot * 

The adult flies of this species may frequently be found upon 
corn and are readily recognized by the banded wings. They are 
similar in size to the last species, but the back is metallic blue- 
green except the head, which is mostly hoary, with brownish- 
black eyes. The maggots have been recorded as injurious to 
corn and sugarcane and have been recently noted in Michigan 
associated with the common onion-maggot, destroying onions, f 
The maggots are similar to the onion-maggot but the posterior 
end is more rounded and may be distinguished from the illus- 
trations. The winter is passed in the puparium as far as observed. 

Remedies. — In addition to the measures advocated for the last 
species, the destruction of the affected onions and the thorough 
plowing of affected land in the fall is of prime importance. Stored 
onions which prove infested may be fumigated with carbon bisul- 
fide to destroy the maggots and puparia and prevent the emerg- 
ence of the adults. 

The Asparagus-beetle | 

This is a well-known pest of asparagus in Europe and was 
first observed in Queens County, New York, in 1862, where it 
threatened to destroy the asparagus, one of the most valued 
crops of the Long Island truckers. Since then it has gradually 
spread northward to southern New Hampshire, south to North 
Carolina, and west to Illinois and Wisconsin, and has been found 
at two points in California. There seems no reason why it should 
not spread to wherever asparagus is grown, at least in the North- 
ern States. 

The beetle is a handsome little creature about one-quarter 
inch long, blue-black in color, with red thorax, and dark blue 
wing-covers, marked with lemon-yellow and with reddish bor- 
ders. The markings of the wing-covers are quite variable, the 
light color sometimes forming submarginal spots, while in other 
specimens it becomes so diffused as to form the principal color 
of the wing-covers. 

* Chcetopsis aenea Wied. Family Anthomyidce. 

t See Pettit, Bulletin 200, Mich. Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 206. 

X Crioceris asparagi Linn. Family ChrysomelidcB. See F. H. Chittenden, 
Yearbook, U. S. Dept. Agr., 1896, p. 341; Bulletin 66, Bureau of Ent., pp. 
6, 93, and Farmers' Bulletin 837. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MISCELLANEOUS CROPS 379 



Both adults and larvse feed upon the tender asparagus shoots 
in the spring and later attack the fruiting plants. Their attacks 
render the shoots unfit for market and in many cases their injury 
has been so severe as to make it extremely difficult to estabhsh 
new beds. 

Life History. — The beetles hibernate over winter under what- 
ever rubbish or shelter may be available near the asparagus 
patch. About the season that cutting asparagus for market 
commences they appear and lay the eggs for the first new brood 





Fig. 317. — The asparagus-beetle (Crioceris asparagi Linn.): eggs, larva, and 
beetle — all much enlarged. (Photos by W. E. Britton.) 

The egg is dark brown, oval, nearly one-sixteenth of an inch 
long and is laid on end. The eggs are deposited upon the stems 
or foliage, usually two to seven or more in a row. They hatch 
in from three to eight days. The young larvae at once com- 
mence to attack the tender shoots, and later in the season feed 
upon the foliage. They become full grown in from ten days 
to two weeks. The full grown larva, as shown in the illustra- 
tion, is about one-third of an inch long, soft and fleshy, much 
wrinkled, and of a dark gray or olive color, with black head 
and legs. The mature larva drops to the ground and just be- 
neath the surface forms a little rounded earth-covered cocoon 
within which it changes to the pupa, from which the beetle 



380 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

emerges in about a week. Thus the complete life cycle may 
be passed in a minimum of three weeks at Washington, D. C, 
where there are possibly four generations in a year, while farther 
north, six or seven weeks may be required for the life cycle, and 
there are probably only two generations. 

1 The asparagus-beetles are held in check by several natural 
agencies. Several species of ladybird-beetles feed upon the eggs, 
while numerous soldier-bugs attack the larvae which they impale 
on their stout beaks. The adult beetles are often killed by low 
temperature in the winter, which doubtless limits their northern 
spread, while the eggs and larvae are sometimes killed by the 
intense heat of summer, which will also probably hmit the south- 
ern spread of the species. 

Control. — One of the best means of control is to keep all 
shoots cut down in the spring so as to force the beetles to lay 
their eggs on the young shoots, which are cut for market every 
few days before the eggs have hatched, and hence no larvae are 
allowed to hatch. 

Another method which has proven effective is to cut down 
all the seed stems but a few rows here and there, so that the 
beetles will concentrate upon them, and then poison these thor- 
oughly with arsenicals, or they may be cut down and burned 
and other rows allowed to grow as traps. 

Air-slaked lime dusted on the plants in the morning while 
the dew is on will destroy the soft-bodied larvae very effectively. 
Another way to destroy the larvae in hot weather is simply to 
brush them from the plants so that they will drop on the hot 
soil. As they crawl but slowly few will regain the plants, par- 
ticularly if the brushing be followed with a cultivator. 

Probably the most effective means of controlling this pest, 
which was formerly a very difficult one to combat, is spraying 
with arsenate of lead. Use 3 pounds to 50 gallons, to which 3 
pounds of resin soap should be added to render it more adhesive, 
although good results have been secured without the sticker. 
Such spraying should be given as soon as cutting is over and should 
be repeated once or twice at intervals of ten days. Where the 
young shoots are kept closely cut and the bed is then sprayed, 
there should be no trouble to control the pest, and young beds 
should be kept thoroughly sprayed with arsenate of lead from 
the time the beetles appear until danger from injury is over. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MISCELLANEOUS CROPS 381 



The Twelve-spotted Asparagus-beetle * 

The Twelve-spotted Asparagus Beetle is also of European 
origin, having been first introduced into this country near Balti- 
more, Md., in 1881. Since then it has become almost as widely 
distributed as the previous species. 

The beetles may be distinguished from the last species by 
the broader wing-covers, each of which is orange-red, marked 
with six black spots. The chief injury by this species is by the 
beetles which emerge from hibernation feeding on the young 
shoots. Later generations attack the foliage, but the larvse 
seem to prefer to feed upon the ripening berries. The larva is 
of the same general 
appearance as that 
of the preceding spe- 
cies, but may be dis- 
tinguished by its 
orange color. The 
eggs are laid singly, 
and are attached on 
the sides instead of 
on end. They are 
deposited mostly on ^ j^ ^^ — , 

old plants toward Fig. 318.— The twelve-spotted asparagus-beetle (Cri- 
the ends of the oceris 12-punctata Linn.): a, beetle; b, larva; c, 
u + U" u u second abdominal segment of larva; d, same of 

shoots which bear c, asparagi — a, b, enlarged; c, d, more enlarged, 
ripening berries (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

lower down. Soon after a larva hatches it finds its way to a berry 
and feeds upon its ripening pulp, from which it migrates to an- 
other, feeding upon several, perhaps, before full growth is obtained, 
when it drops to the ground and pupates like the last species. 
The hfe cycle is essentially the same and there are probably the 
same number of generations. 

Control. — The remedies advocated for the previous species 
will be found satisfactory except those which are directed against 
the larvse, as the habit of the larva of concealing itself in the 
berry would make the application of insecticides to the seed- 
stalks of little use. 

* Crioceris 12-punctata Linn. See F. H. Chittend3n, I.e., and D. E. Fink, 
Cornell Univ. Expt. Sta., Bulletin 331. 




382 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

The Asparagus Miner * 

Occasionally injury by the small white maggots of a fly have 
been observed in the asparagus beds of Long Island, California, 
Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and District of Columbia, but the 
damage seems rarely to be very serious. The adult is a small 
black fly about one-sixth of an inch long and is usually found 
on the flowers of the asparagus, and occurs from New England 
to Tennessee. These flies emerge early in June. The exact manner 
of egg-laying has not been observed, but the young maggots are 





Fig. 319. — The asparagus miner (Agromyza simplex Loew) : at left, side view 
of fly; a, larva; b, thoracic spiracles; c, anal spiracles; d, puparium from 
side; e, same from above; /, section of asparagus stalk showing injury 
and location of puparia on detached section — a, e, much enlarged; /, 
slightly reduced. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

found mining just beneath the surface of the stalks, especially 
young stalks. The maggots are about one-fifth of an inch long, pure 
white, except the black rasping hooks which project from the 
head. When full grown the maggots change to puparia beneath 
the epidermis. The next brood of adult flies emerge early in 
August. A second brood of maggots seems to occur and the 
puparia of the second brood pass the winter, and from them 
come the flies early the next summer. 

Injury from the mining of the maggots has been most serious 
on seedling and newly set beds, though it may occur on cutting 

* Agromyza simplex Loew. Family Agromyzidee. See Sirrine, Bulletin 
189, N. Y. Agr. Exp. Sta.; Chittenden, Bulletin 66, Part I, Bureau of Ento- 
mology, pp. 1 and 5, Fig. 2, and D. E. Fink, Bulletin 331. Cornell Univ. Agr. 
Exp. Station. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MISCELLANEOUS CROPS 383 



beds, being apparent by the plants turning yellow and dying 
much ear her than they naturally do. 

Pulling the old stalks and burning them in late summer seems 
to be the best means for controlling the pest, from our present 
knowledge of it, which, however, is still rather meager. Dr. 
Chittenden has suggested that letting a few stalks grow as a 
trap-crop to which the flies might be lured, and then destroying 
these stalks, might protect the cutting beds. 

D. E. Fink (I.e.) recommends the addition of syrup to the 
arsenical apphed for the beetles so that it 
will act as a poisoned bait for the flies. In 
addition to this he suggests pulling the in- 
fested stalks in late fall and early spring and i ml^^m'a I 
destroying them. 

The Sweet-potato Flea-beetle * 

As soon as the sweet-potato plants are 
set out they are often attacked by hordes of 
hungry little brownish flea-beetles. Small 
channels are eaten out of both surfaces of 
the leaf in a very characteristic manner, 
quite different from the work of other flea- 
beetles (Fig. 320), and often the whole sur- 
face is seared but never punctured. As a 
result many of the leaves of the seedling are 
killed outright, turn brown, and decay, while 
new leaves put out from below, thus check- 
ing the growth. These attacks have been 
found to be worst on low land and that pre- 
viously in sweet potatoes, and are always 
first noticed near fence rows or woodland 
where the beetles have hibernated. The 
beetle is bronzed or brassy-brown about 
one-sixteenth inch long, thick set, and the 
wing-covers when seen under a lens are 
deeply striated. 




Fig. 320.— The sweet- 
potato flea-beetle 
{Chcetocnema confinis 
Lee.) : adult and larva 
— much enlarged. 
(After J. B. Smith.) 



* Chcetocnema confinis Leo. Family Chryso7nelidoe. See Sanderson, Bul- 
letin 59, Md. Agr. Exp. Sta.; J. B. Smith, Bulletin 229, N. J. Agr. Exp. Sta. 



384 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

Life History. — The beetles hibernate over winter in rubbish, 
under logs, leaves or other vegetation^ and emerge early in May. 
They mate as soon as they have fed a httle, and disappear by 
the middle of June in New Jersey. But little is known of the 
early stages of the insect and they have never been found on 
sweet-potato plants. The larvae have been found, however, 
feeding on the roots of bindweed. The larva (Fig. 320) is a 
slender, white grub, about one-eighth inch long, and feeds exter- 
nally upon the smaller roots. The beetles appear again in August, 
but do not as a rule feed on sweet potatoes, preferring bindweeds 
and wild morning-glories, from which they disappear in late 
September, 

Control. — By dipping the plants in arsenate of lead, 1 pound 
to 10 gallons of water, as they are being set, they will be pro- 
tected and any beetles feeding on them will be killed. The 
plants should be allowed to dry slightly before being set. Dip- 
ping the plants is much better than spraying them later, as it 
is practically impossible to completely cover the plant by spray- 
ing, as may be done in dipping, which is much quicker and less 
expensive. Late-planted sweet potatoes are much less seriously 
injured, as the beetles will seek out their wild food-plants and 
become established upon them, so that late planting may be 
resorted to when necessary or more convenient. Well grown, 
stocky plants will better withstand injury, and liberal fertiliza- 
tion will enable them to make a quick growth even if slightly 
checked. 

Tortoise-beetles or Gold-bugs * 

Of all the insects affecting the sweet potato, the brilhant 
little golden beetles which form one tribe {Cassidce) of the large 
family of leaf -beetles, are the most common and are quite pecuhar 
to it. They are beautiful insects, some of the species appearing 
like drops of molten gold, which has given them the name of 
"gold-bugs," while the broad expansion of the thorax and wing- 
covers gives them a fancied resemblance to a tortoise; hence the 
name "tortoise-beetles." The species affecting the sweet potato 
are classed in three different genera, but are sufficiently alike in 
their general habits and Kfe history to be treated together. 

* Family Chrysomelidce. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MISCELLANEOUS CROPS 385 



Life History. — The beetles hibernate over winter and in the 
spring before the sweet-potato plants are set they feed on their 
native food-plant, the morning glory. As soon as the plants are 
set out, the beetles commence to eat large round holes in the 
leaves, and so riddle them that many often must be replanted. 
The worst damage, however, is done to the set on which the 
eggs are laid. Rarely are the new shoots seriously eaten or are 
eggs laid upon them. The larvae hatch during the first half of 
June in Maryland, and require slightly over two weeks to become 




Fig. 32L — Above — The golden tortoise-beetle [Coptocycla bicolor Fab.): a, h, 
larvae; c, pupa; d, beetle; egg at right — all enlarged. (After Riley.) — Below 
The two-striped sweet-potato beetle (Cassida bimttataSay): 1, larvae on leaf; 
2, larva; 3, pupa; 4, beetle — all enlarged. (After Riley.) 

full grown. Though the larvae do considerable damage by eating 
the foliage, it is not nearly as serious as that done by the beetles. 
The larvae are almost as disagreeable as the adult beetles are 
attractive, but are nevertheless very interesting creatures. Each 
of them is provided with a tail-like fork at the end of the body 
which is almost as long as the body, and in those species in which 
it is depressed, entirely conceals the insect. Upon this fork is 
heaped the excrement and cast skins of the larva, and when 
covered by this "umbrella" it is with great difficulty that the 
larva is distinguished from a bit of mud or a bird-dropping. 
The manner in which this fork increases with the size of the 



386 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

larva is rather interesting. At each molt, the faeci-fork of the 
last stage is held upon the new fseci-fork, and in this way those 
of the different stages are telescoped, the one inside the other, 
and the stage of growth of the larva may be readily determined 
by the number of cast skins held on the fork. From the like- 
ness of this burden to a pack, the larvae are often known as 
"peddlers." In order more firmly to bind the excrement and 
cast skins to the fork, the larvae fasten them together by a fine 
network of silken threads, which are attached to the spines at 
the sides of the body. When fully grown the larva fastens itself 
to a leaf, its skin splits open along the back, and from it comes 
the pupa, which is held to the leaf by its caudal fork, which is 
securely encased in the fseci-fork of the larval skin. About a 
week later the adult beetle emerges, eats for a few days and then 
disappears from the sweet-potato patch until the following spring, 
doubtless feeding on morning glory until it enters hibernation. 

Control. — From the similarity of their life history and habits 
all of these species may be treated at once. As the beetles do the 
most injury just after the plants are set, they should be dipped 
in arsenate of lead when setting, as advised for the flea-beetle. 
If this has not been done or if the beetles are injurious in the 
forcing bed, the plants should be thoroughly sprayed with arse- 
nate of lead, 3 pounds .per barrel or Paris green, | pound per 
barrel with | pound of freshly slaked hme. 

The Sweet-potato Root-borer * 

Since 1890 sweet potatoes have been seriously injured in parts 

of Texas and Louisiana by a small white grub which bores into 

the stems and tubers both in the field and in storage, but strangely 

it has not spread elsewhere in this country. In Texas the worst 

injury has been in Calhoun and neighboring counties along the 

Gulf Coast where extensive growing of sweet potatoes has been 

abandoned on account of the pest. During recent years it has 

spread to central Texas and there seems to be no reason why it 

should not spread over the Gulf States. It is a cosmopolitan 

insect being reported from China, India, Madagascar, AustraHa 

and Cuba. It was first noticed in the vicinity of New Orleans 

* Cylas formicarius Oliv. Family Curculionidce. See Farmers' Bulletin 
1020, U. S. Dept. Agr. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MISCELLANEOUS CROPS 387 



in 1875 and has since spread northward along the Mississippi.* 
In 1879 it was reported from Florida and was studied by Pro- 
fessor J. H. Comstock.f 

The adult beetle is a rather slender insect, about one-quarter 
inch long, of a bluish-black color, with a reddish-brown pro- 
thorax, and has received its specific name, formicarius, from its 
fancied resemblance to an ant. 

Life History.— The yellowish-white, oval eggs are deposited in 
small cavities eaten out by the mother beetle either at the base 
of the vine or at the stem end of the tuberous root, or in the 




Fig. 322. — Present known distribution of the sweet-potato weevil in the 
southern United States. (Farmers' Bulletin 1020). 

tubers in storage. The small grubs commence to burrow in the 
vine, sometimes maturing in the vine before any tubers have 
developed, but usually they descend to the tubers, which in the 
course of the season, and with the aid of the beetles, they thor- 
oughly riddle. The full-grown larva is about one-quarter inch 
long, whitish with light brown head, the segments are strongly 
constricted, and the legs are wanting, being represented by mere 
tubercles. The grub forms a small cavity at the end of the 
burrow and transforms to the pupa. In this stage it remains 
from one to two weeks, when the adult beetle emerges and after 
a few days commences to lay eggs for another generation. The 
whole Hfe cycle requires from thirty to forty days, so that there 
may be several generations in a year. Professor Comstock having 

* Bulletin 28, La. Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 999. 

t See Report U. S. Comm. Agr., for 1879, p. 249. 



388 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



observed three generations. In central Texas the beetles hiber- 
nate over winter, but in south Texas they continue to breed in 
the bins during the winter. 

Control. — Dr. F. H. Chittenden (I.e.) recommends the follow- 
ing methods for control in addition to the quarantine measures 
which have been established by various states to prevent the 
spread of the beetle in shipments of infested potatoes. Rotation 
of crops, especially valuable since the weevil does not breed in 
crops other than the sweet potato and does not breed in any 
other plants except a few closely related weeds, is the first recom- 




Fig. 323. — The sweet-potato root-borer (Cylas fonnicarius): extreme left 
hand figure, adult beetle, with enlarged antennae at right; figure at left 
center, pupa; at right center, larva; at extreme right, portion of sweet- 
potato tuber channeled by borer- — all figures except the last considerably 
enlarged; natural sizes indicated by hair lines. (After Farmers' Bulletin, 
No. 26, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

mendation. Clean culture, including the destruction of all refuse 
from infested fields, and the burning or feeding to hogs of all 
damaged potatoes. Removal of the seed beds as far as possible 
from the field where the potatoes are to be grown has also proven 
of great value in reducing the amount of damage. Dipping the 
plants, before setting, in a solution of lead arsenate and later, 
spraying with an arsenical, zinc arsenite being suggested as 
having given success, to kill the early appearing beetles, are 
also recommended. Prompt harvesting, as soon as the potatoes 
are ready, and the separation of damaged potatoes is necessary. 
Keep down volunteer plants upon which the weevils can breed. 



CHAPTER XX 

INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE STRAWBERRY * 

The Strawberry Root-louse f 

If bare spots are found in the strawberry bed and the neigh- 
boring plants are unhealthy, the presence of the root-louse may 
be suspected, especially if ants are abundant around the plants. 
If present, the small dark green or blackish aphids will be found 
clustered on the roots and stems, caus- 
ing the plants to wither and die. The 
individual aphid is only about one- 
twentieth inch long, and deep bluish or 
greenish-black when mature, the young- 
er stages being Hghter, and somewhat 
pear-shaped as shown in Fig. 324. 

Injury by this pest was first noted in 
southern IlUnois in 1884 and a few years 
later it became troublesome in Ohio. In 
the late '90s it ruined many beds on the Fig. 324. — The strawberry 

Maryland-Delaware peninsula and be- ^T^'J?''^''- ^i^^'"'- ••^'""^^'' 
*' . . ^ VVeed) ; wingless viviparous 

came estabhshed m New Jersey. Since female of late summer — 
then it has become distributed on plants g^^eatly enlarged, 
throughout most of the states east of the Rockies, injury having 
been noted in New Hampshire, Michigan, Minnesota, Kansas, 
Texas, and Kentucky. Injury is most severe on Hght, sandy 
soils and the pest rarely becomes very troublesome on heaviey 
soils. Injury is also more or less periodic, the aphids almost 
disappearing after doing serious injury for two or three years. 
Fortunately the strawberry is the only food plant and the root- 
hce found on other crops are entirely different species. 

* See L. Bruner, Report Nebraska Horticultural Society, pp. 49-100; 
J. B. Smith, Bulletin 225, N. J. Agr. Exp. Sta.; A. L. Quaintance, Bulletin 
42, Fla. Agr. Exp. Sta.; S. A. Forbes, 13th Report State Ent. of 111., pp. 
60-180. 

^ Aphis forbesi Weed. Family Aphididoe. See Sanderson, Bulletin 49, 
12th, 13th and 14th Reports, Del. Agr. Exp. Sta. 

389 




390 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Lije History. — The winter is passed in the egg stage, the eggs 
being black and shining and located on the stems and on the 
midribs of the leaves. The eggs hatch early in the spring and 
the young aphids feed on the young leaves in the crown. This 
generation is composed of wingless females which give birth to 




Fig. 325. — Strawberry root-lice clustered on small rootlets from crown of 
plant — greatly enlarged. 

living young and this method of reproduction continues until 
fall when males appear and the eggs are again produced. Shortly 
after the aphids have become active the ants appear and carry 
many of the young aphids down and place them on the roots 
of the plants. This ant is the same as the one which harbors 
the corn-root aphis. (See page 152.) On the roots of the plant 
the aphids cause the most of the damage, weakening and even 
killing the plants. They are transferred from plant to plant 
by the ants in the underground stage while above ground winged 
forms which fly to fresh food plants appear from time to time. 
Control. — The aphid is largely kept in check by parasitic 
enemies similar to those described as attacking the "green-bug" 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE STRAWBERRY 



391 



and so rarely becomes a serious pest or remains so for a period 

of years. 

The best method of avoiding loss is to set out uninfested 
plants on land as far removed from infested beds as possible. 
Plants can be freed from the lice by dipping them, after the 




Fig. 326. — Eggs of strawberry root-louse or P'ig. 327. — Strawberry root-lice which have 
leaf steiQ. been killed by parasites, with one of the 

little parasitic flieswhichhas justemerged . 

eggs have all hatched, in a solution of tobacco. Plants may 

also be freed from aphids by fumigation with hydrocyanic acid 

gas (see Delaware bulletin by the senior author). The aphids 

in an infested bed may be largely destroyed in the spring by 

scattering straw over the bed and burning before growth has 

started. There is little danger of injury to the plants if this 

is properly done. 

The Strawberry Crown-borer * 

Strawberry plants are often dwarfed or killed by a small white 

larva which mines out the interior of the crown, hollowing it out 

from the bases of the leaves to the larger roots. Usually but 

one grub is found in a plant, and it looks very much like a small 

* Tyloderma fragrarios Riley. Family Curculionidoe . See S. A. Forbes, 
12th Report 111. State Ent., p. 64; 13th Report, p. 142; H. Garman, Bulletin 
80, Ky. Agr. Exp. Sta.. n. 261. 



392 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

white grub as it lies curled in its burrow. It is only about one- 
quarter inch long, and legless, the body being white and the head 
yellowish brown. The adult beetle is a small snout-beetle about 




Fig. 328. — A Delaware strawberry bed in summer of 1900, showing injury, 
by the strawberry root-louse. 

one-fifth inch long, of a dark color, with head and thorax nearly 
black, and on each wing-cover are three black spots, the middle 

one being the largest and 
separated from the others by 
pale lines. According to 
Professor Garman the wings 
are too small to be used for 
flight and this doubtless ac- 
counts for the slow spread 
of the pest. Injury has been 
reported from Illinois, Ken- 
tucky, Missouri, and Neb- 
raska, but as the larvae might be readily shipped in plants, it is 
quite probable that it has become generally distributed but has 
not done sufficient injury to attract attention. 

Life History. — The beetles appear during the latter part of 
summer and fall and hibernate over winter in the soil, emerging 
early the next spring. The eggs have not been observed, but are 




Fig. 329. — The strawberry crown-borer {Ty- 
loderma fragraricB Riley): a, larva; 6, c, 
beetle — enlarged. (After Riley.) 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE STRAWBERRY 393 

undoubtedly laid on the crown between the bases of the leaves 
in late spring. The larvae develop in the crowns and become full 
grown by midsummer or August when they pupate in the cavities 
formed and the adult beetles emerge in late summer and fall. 
There seems to be but one generation a year. Old plants are 
worst injured, and runners formed late in the season are usually 
free from the pest, as eggs are probably not laid after June. 

Control. — Frequent rotation, plowing up the bed after one 
or two crops, will largely prevent the pest becoming established. 
Where the insect is well-established in old beds, it will be well 
to secure plants from beds known to be free from the pest and 
to plant new beds at some distance from the old ones. Infested 
beds should have the plants plowed out and raked up and burned 
as soon as possible after the fruit is harvested and before August. 
Owing to the fortunate fact that the beetle cannot fly ffom field 
to field, if the above measures are consistently carried out 
there should be no trouble in controlling the injury. 

Strawberry Rootworms * 

The larvae of three species of common leaf-beetles often feed 
upon the roots of the strawberry and are easily mistaken for the 
crown-borer or for small white grubs. They may be distinguished 
from the former by having three pairs of small thoracic legs just 
back of the head, and from the latter by their being much thicker. 
These rootworms are from one-eighth to one-sixth inch long, 
whitish, with brownish heads, and usually feed on the roots 
externally, though sometimes boring into them or the crown. 
Dr. Forbes * has indicated the structural differences by which 
they may be separated and shows that their life histories are 
quite dissimilar. "The larva of Colas-pis appears early in the 
season, and does its mischief chiefly in the months of April and 
May, the beetles beginning to emerge in June. That the eggs 
are laid in the preceding year is highly probable, in which case 
the species hibernates in the egg. Typophorus, on the other 
hand, certainly passes the winter as an adult, doubtless laying 
its eggs in spring, and making its principal attacks upon the 
plants in June and July, the beetles emerging in the latter part of 

* Typophorus canellus Fab., Colaspis brunnea Fab., Graphops pubescens 
Mels. Family Chrysomelidoe. See Forbes, I.e., p. 150. 



394 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



July and early in August. Graphops hibernates in the larval con- 
dition, pupates in the spring, and emerges in May and June. The 

eggs are probably laid in 
July, and the larvae make 
their attack upon the 
plant in August and Sep- 
tember. . . " — Forbes. 
Thus the larvae of the 
three species may be 
found throughout the 
season where all occur, 
The beetles are about 
one-eighth inch long and 
may be distinguished as 
follows, according t o 
Bruner: "Colapsis hrun- 
nea is usually of a yel- 
lowish clay color, but 
ranges to yellowish- 
brown. The body is 
smooth but not shining. 
Typophorus canellus is 
usually shiny, black 
above, varying to brown, 
with four black blotches 
on the wing-covers. The 
legs and antennae are 
always pale. Graphops 
puhescens is either green 
or purple with a bronze 
metallic sheen, and has 
the entire body more or 
less covered with a gray 
pubescence." The pupae 
are all found in earthen 
cells among the roots of 
the plants . The beetles of 
Fig. 330.— The strawberry root-borer (Typo- allthreespeciesfeedonthe 
phorus canellus Fab.) : adult and larva — very foliage and when numer- 
greatly enlarged, hairline at right of beetle .„ 

shows natural size. (After Pettit.) OUS Will attract attention. 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE STRAWBERRY 



395 



Control. — Whenever the plants are not in fruit, the beetles 
may be destroyed by spraying with 3 pounds of arsenate of 
lead per barrel, preferably appKed with Bordeaux mixture. 
Where the plants are customarily sprayed with Bordeaux mix- 
ture for leaf diseases arsenicals may be added and will probably 
control this and other strawberry pests. Badly infested fields 
should be plowed under deeply as soon as the crop is secured 
and new beds should be planted at some distance from them. 



The Strawberry Saw-fly * 

Occasionally the strawberry leaves are skeletonized by yellow- 
ish or greenish "worms" one-half to three-quarters of an inch 
long when full grown. The head is yellow with two brown spots 
on the side and one or 
two on top, and there 
are eight pairs of yel- 
lowish abdominal pro- 
legs, in addition to the 
true thoracic legs, 
which at once disting- 
uish the saw-fly larvae 
from true caterpillars. 
The adult saw-flies are 
about one-quarter inch 
long, with two pairs of 
blackish, well-veined Fig. 331.— The strawberry saw-fly (Harpiphorus 
wings which are folded ^'T^f "« Norton) : 1, 2, pupa; 3, 5 adult flies; 
,, , , , 4, 6, larvae; 7, cocoon; 9, egg— all enlarged, 

over the abdomen when (After Riley.) 

at rest. The body is black, with a row of lighter spots on either 

side of the abdomen. The flies emerge in late April in Missouri or 

about a fortnight before the plants flower freely. The eggs are 

inserted just beneath the epidermis of the leaves and hatch in 

about two weeks, just as the plants begin to bloom. The larvte 

eat holes in the leaves and "where numerous, they will defoliate 

the plants to such an extent as to injure greatly or completely 

destroy the crop of fruit, and may even kill the plants them- 

* Harpiphorus maculatus Norton. Family Tenthredinidoe. See J. M 
Stedman, Bulletin 54, Mo. Agr. Exp. Sta. 




396 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

selves." When at rest or disturbed the larvae coil themselves up 
in a spiral on the under side of the leaf as shown in Fig. 331, but 
if suddenly disturbed they will often drop to the ground. By 
the last of May the larvae are full grown and enter the soil, where 
they make small cells, lined with a gummy substance, and in them 
hibernate until the next spring, when they pupate and the adult 
flies emerge. 

Injury by the saw-fly has been reported from the Northern 
and Central States from Missouri and Nebraska to Maine. 

A nearly related species * with almost identical habits has 
done similar injury in Iowa, Illinois and Indiana. The larvae 
are a deep green, much wrinkled, with a blackish stripe along 
the back and an obscure blackish stripe on each side, and the 
head brown. 

Control. — Inasmuch as the larvae commence to hatch just as 
blooming commences Professor Stedman has shown by experi- 
ments that spraying the foliage at this time with arsenicals will 
entirely protect it from the larvae. If they commence work 
before their presence is noticed, the fohage may be sprayed 
until the first berries are about one-third grown without any 
danger of poisoning them. Hellebore, 1 pound to 3 gallons of 
water was also effective, as was dusting with pyrethrum. 
Although there may be some prejudice against the use of arsen- 
icals, where properly apphed at the right time there is no reason 
why they should not be used. 

The Strawberry Leaf-roller f 

Where leaves are found folded together, many of them being 
dry and brown, the small green caterpillars found feeding within 
the folds are probably those of the Strawberry Leaf-roller. It 
is a European insect, though it is not injurious there, and the 
first record of injury in this country was made by Dr. C. V. 
Riley in 1869, who stated that in one place in Missouri it destroyed 
ten acres so completely as not to leave enough plants to set a 
half acre. "Since that time," says Dr. J. B. Smith, "the insect 
has been frequently mentioned as injurious in many parts of the 

* Monostegia ignota Norton. See F. W. Mally, "Insect Life," Vol. II, 
p. 137. 

t Ancylis comptana Frohl. Family Tortricidoe. See J. B. Smith, Bulle- 
tins 149 and 225, N. J. Agr. Exp. Sta. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE STRAWBERRY 397 

country, but rarely is it troublesome for more than a year or 
two in succession. It is always inclined to be local and its 
ravages do not often extend over wide areas." 

Life History. — The moths appear in the strawberry fields 
during early May in New Jersey and commence to lay eggs, the 
moths being found in the fields for about a month. The eggs are 
laid on the under surface of the half-grown leaves. They are 
broadly oval or round, much flattened, of a pale green color and 
about one-fiftieth inch in diameter. They are laid in the fine 
netting of the leaf, in which they are seen with great difficulty. 
The larvae hatch in from five to seven days. The young cater- 
pillar feeds on the upper surface of the leaf for a day or two, 




Fig. 332. — The strawberry leaf-roller moth (Anajlis comptana Frohl.) — 
enlarged. (After J. B. Smith.) 

eating into and along the midrib to weaken it. The young larva 
is at first a hght green color with a large head and long hair, 
which becomes less noticeable as it grows. 

It soon commences to draw the edges of the leaf together, 
folding the upper surface on the midrib, holding it together by 
numerous strands of fine silk. The insect then spins a partial 
tube or Hning inside, in which it remains until the moth develops. 
Unless disturbed the larva does not leave this folded leaf, and all 
the feeding is done out of the reach of sprays. The larva becomes 
full grown in about four weeks, when it is about half an inch long 
and of a dark-green color, until just before pupation, when it 
becomes more yellowish. The head and thoracic shield are 
shining brown, and the small body tubercles are slightly lighter. 
The larvae are slender and very active, wriggling violently when 
disturbed or taken from their webs. 

" Pupation occurs in the tube made by the larva. The pupa 
itself is brownish-yellow, without obvious processes or protuber- 



398 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



ances, and a little more than one-fourth an inch long." The pupal 
stage lasts about ten days, thus giving about forty-two to fifty 
days for the complete life cycle from egg to adult. 

The moths of the second brood appear late in June and during 
July. This brood is much more abundant on blackberry and 
raspberry than on strawberry plants. The moths of the third 




Fig. 333.— Strawberry leaf folded by the leaf-roller. (After J. B. Smith.) 

brood appear in August. They are comparatively few in number 
and also seem to prefer blackberry and raspberry. Young larvae 
are, however, to be found on strawberries in September. "Accord- 
ing to the account given by Riley, the larvae change to pupas 
late in September and remain during the winter in that state." 
Dr. Smith states that he has not observed this personally. In 
Delaware we have found full-grown larvae in folded leaves in 
midwinter, so that possibly some of them at least do not pupate 
until spring. 

" The adult moth is small, measuring with expanded wings 
about two-fifths of an inch. In general color it is somewhat 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE STRAWBERRY 399 

reddish-brown, the fore-wings streaked and spotted with black 
and white as shown in the illustration. When the wings are 
folded, the dark area at the base forms a somewhat conspicuous 
deeper brown patch in the middle of the back. The hind-wings 
are of a soft, dark smoky gray, and both wings have long fringes. 
The insects fly readily during the middle of the day, and run 
rapidly on the leaves, diving to the under side or into a fold so 
quickly that it requires close watching to follow their move- 
ments. From the fact that newly set fields are often infested, it 
is probable that they fly for some distance to seek their food 
plant." — Smith. 

"A badly infested strawberry-patch begins to look scorched 
early in June, and before the middle of that month appears ns if 
a fire had been over it. The fruit, deprived of the food prepared 
by the foliage, stops growth, ripens undersized or prematurely, or 
shrivels up altogether, even before it colors." "Often every 
lobe on a leaf will be folded, and occasionally, when infested 
leaves cover or touch, an irregular mass of foliage is bundled 
up in which as many as six or eight larvae may be found. 

"On blackberry not so large a part of the leaf is involved, 
and frequently only the tip of one of the leaflets is webbed up. 
Furthermore, the injury is more local, and only that part that 
is actually eaten is harmed. The total amount of food really 
devoured is very small, and were it not for the manner of feeding, 
which interferes with the nutrition of the leaf, the strawberry 
could easily spare tissue for all these caterpillars that ever infest 
it. On the raspberry the habit is yet difi'erent. Here the larva 
gets into a partly opened tip and webs it together so securely 
as to check growth. The actual eating shows a rusty space on 
the upper side of the leaf, and not much more harm is done." 

Control. — As stated above, the young caterpillar, just after 
it is hatched, goes to the upper surface of the leaf and feeds there 
exposed for a day or two before folding the leaf. "It must be 
the object of the grower to poison the foliage so early in the season 
that when the young caterpillar starts feeding, it can find no 
fohage it can safely eat. Therefore, as soon as moths are found 
flying in fair numbers, spray with arsenate of lead. Experiments 
in New Jersey have shown that complete control may be secured 
with one application if this is thorough and applied at the right time. 



400 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



"If for any reason no timely applications were made and the 
fields become badly infested, nothing practical can be done until 
the crop is off. Then mow the beds, rake off all the fohage, and 
burn it. You will burn with it all the larvae and pupae that are 
then unchanged. This lessens the number of moths that come 
to maturity and so helps somewhat for the following year." 

The Strawberry Weevil * 

If the buds appear to be "stung" so that they wither, and 
if many of the stems are cut so that the buds drop to the ground, 
the strawberry weevil is the probable cause 
of the damage. This little weevil is only 
about one-tenth inch long and so is often 
unnoticed, and the loss is attributed to other 
causes. The weevil varies from nearly 
black to dull red, with a dark spot just back 
of the centre of each wing-cover. The head 
is prolonged into a slender curved snout, 
about half as long as the body. The species 
is found in most of the States east of the 
Rockies, but injury has been mosts evere in 
the Middle and Northern States. 

Life History. — The weevils hibernate over 
winter and appear in spring a few days be- 
fore the earliest staminate varieties com- 
mence to bloom. Others emerge during the 
Fig. 334. — The straw- , ^u u ^ iu a • • • j 

berry weevil (Antho- ^^xt month, but the most injury is done 

nomus signatus Say.)— within the next two weeks. The injury is 
enlarged. (After Riley , T_.ir i u-i, x iiui 

and Chittenden U. S. done by the females, which eat small holes 

Dept. Agr.) through the outer husk or corolla of nearly 

matured buds, and in these little cavities deposit their eggs. The 
stem of the bud is then cut so that it hangs by a mere thread and 
soon falls to the ground. By severing the stem the development of 
the bud is arrested, thus preventing the outer covering from un- 
folding and holding the eggs and larvae in the pollen, on which they 
feed, and by falling to the ground the bud remains moist and will 
not dry up as it would on the stem. The eggs hatch in from six 

* Anthonomus signatus Say. Family Curculionidoe. See F. H. Chitten- 
den, Circular 21, Div. Ent., U. S. Dept. Agr.; J. B. Smith, Bulletin 225, 
N. J. Agr. Exp. Sta. 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE STRAWBERRY 



401 



to seven days and the small whitish larvae feed on the pollen and 
later on the harder parts of the buds. Three or four weeks are re- 
quired for a larva to become full grown. It then forms a little cell 
in the bud, in which the pupal stage is passed in from five to eight 
days, when the adult beetle emerges and cuts its way out. Thus 
the complete life cycle occupies about a month and in the District 
of Columbia the new generation of beetles appears during June. 
They are frequently found in large numbers on strawberry flowers 
and on those of the horse 
mint {Monarda fistulosa), 
but the beetles soon seek 
hibernating quarters, there 
being but one generation 
a year. 

Control. — As the larvae 
feed upon the pollen of the 
buds of staminate varieties, 
the staminate varieties are 
most injured, and injury 
may be avoided by growing 
as few rows of staminate 
varieties as are necessary Fig. 335.— The strawberry weevil: a, 6, spray 

for fertilizing the rest of the ^^^^^^s To^'k ^" b"^ ^1 stem-natural 
^ size; c, outline of egg; a, larva; e, head oi 

bed. Indeed the very early same; /, pupa; g, bud opened to show egg 
^tnminafp vnriptip'=! mio-bf on left and punctures made by snout of 
Staminate vaneties mignt beetle through petals. (After Chittenden, 
be used as a trap crop for U. S. Dept. Agr.) 
attracting the weevils, which might be destroyed by covering 
the rows with straw and burning, or possibly by spraying with 
arsenicals. By planting rows of early varieties, which flower 
freely and produce an abundance of pollen near woods and 
fence-rows where the beetles have hibernated and appear first, 
they might be effectively trapped, and then destroyed. Although 
the larvae cannot be reached with any insecticide, the beetles 
feed more or less on the buds and foliage, and further experiments 
should be made in spraying for them with arsenicals. Dr. T. J. 
Headlee (Circulars 56 and 65, New Jersey Agr. Exp. Station) 
recommends dusting the plants with arsenate of lead powder 
one pound mixed with five pounds sulphur dust. On a large 




402 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

scale this should be applied with power dusters as the hand 
dusters have not proven so successful. Begin applications as 
soon as the weevils appear, not later than the first of May. 

Lead arsenate appHed as a spray has seemed to give good 
control in some smaller tests and should be at least as effective 
as the dust. 

The destruction of all trash and rubbish in and around the 
fields during the winter will destroy some of the hibernating 
weevils, and it will be well to avoid mulching the beds where 
the beetle is troublesome, if the mulch is not absolutely neces- 
sary, as it furnishes them the best hibernating quarters. 



CHAPTER XXI 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO RASPBERRY AND BLACKBERRY * 
The Raspberry Root-borer f 

The larvae of the Raspberry Root-borer make tunnels in the 
roots and lower stems of raspberry and blackberry, sometimes 
completely girdhng the stem at the crown, so that the name of 
blackberry crown-borer has also been 
used. The full-grown larva is from 1 to 
1^ inches long, yellowish- white, with 
brownish head, and the tips of the small 
thoracic legs also brownish. The parent 
insect is one of the clear-winged moths, 
which fly by day and closely resemble 
wasps, and is nearly related to the peach- 
and squash-borers. The female is much 
the larger and is shown natural size in 
Fig. 336. The body is black with yellow 
rings, and the legs are yellowish. The 
wings are transparent except a bronze- 
brown margin and a narrow band across 
the fore-wings about one-third from the 
tip. 

Life History. — The moths appear in 
late August and September and the females deposit their eggs 
upon the lower edge of the leaves. The egg is oval, about one- 
sixteenth inch long, deep brownish-red in color. A female lays 
about 140 eggs, which are deposited singly. They hatch in Sep- 
tember and the young larvae crawl down the stems and bore 
under the bark. Here they may either make a small blister- 

* See F. M. Webster, Bulletin 45, Ohio Agr. Exp. Sta.; J. B. Smith, 12th 
Report N. J. Agr. Exp. Sta. 

t Bembecia maerginata Harr. Family Sesiidce. See J. B. Smith, Bulletin 
N., N. J. Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 9; W. H. Lawrence, Bulletin 63, Wash. Agr. Exp. 
Sta. 

403 




Fig. 336.— The raspberry 
root-borer {Bembecia 
marginata Harr.) : a, 
male moth; h, female 
moth — natural size. 
(After Riley.) 



404 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



like cavity and hibernate over winter, or if hatched earlier they 
may feed on the sap wood or occasionally bore into the stem and 
become one-quarter inch or more long before winter. The next 
season the larvae bore in the lower stem and roots, but the 

nature of the injury differs 
as observed in different 
places. In New Jersey, Dr. 
J. B. Smith states that the 
larvae girdle the stem at the 
crown, causing the plants to 
die. In spring they aban- 
don the old wood and 
attack new shoots, but he 
observed none entering the 
stem. In Washington, the 
infested plants seldom 
show any signs of the pres- 
ence of the borers other 
than a poor growth, though 
occasionally a few hills will 
die where the roots have 
been badly riddled by the 
larvae, the injury being 
mostly in the roots. "The 
borer," according to Law- 
rence, "first enters the 
roots and tunnels through 
them promiscuously until 
the second spring, and then 
directs its course upward, 
entering and eating the pith 
of the cane for a distance of 

■c oo-r T> u t- u /T> I. • one to five inches." At the 

Fig. 337. — Raspberry root-borer {Bemhecia ^ ^ '^ 

marginata Harr.): a, female and male end of the first summer the 
larva) full grown; 6 male and female j j one-half to three- 

pupa;; c, lemale, and a, male moths rest- 
ing on leaf; e, e, eggs — slightly reduced, quarters inch long. By the 
(After Lawrence.) middle of the second sum- 

mer the larva is full-grown and bores an exit hole through the 
wood and bark just above the crown, leaving the hole covered by 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO RASPBERRY AND BLACKBERRY 405 



the epidermis only The larva then descends into the tunnel and 
pupates. 

The pupa is about three-quarters inch long, reddish-brown 
the head bears a sharp-pointed process, and each abdominal 
segment bears two transverse rows of sharp teeth. By means 
of these the pupa wriggles itself out of the burrow until it pro- 
j ects from the aperture, and the adult moth emerges. This insect 
occurs throughout the Middle and Northern States east of the 




Fig. 33X. — \\'ork of the raspberry root-borer: a, two canes with empty pupa 
cases projecting from burrows; h, canes showing opening of tunnel 
through which pupse have wriggled out. (After Lawrence.) 

Rockies, is injurious in Washington and around Vancouver, B. C, 
and has been observed in Colorado and New Mexico. 

Control. — The only method of control is to pull up the infested 
canes, root and branch, and destroy them by burning. As this 
is the only means of controlling several pests of cane fruits, the 
canes should always be gone over in spring and those showing 
any injury removed. 

The Raspberry Cane-borer * 

If the tips of the young shoots of raspberry and blackberry 
are found withered and djang they have probably been girdled 
by the cane-borer. The adult beetle is about one-half inch long, 
with a slender, cylindrical body and long antennae, and of a deep 
black color except the prothorax, which is yellow with two or 
three black spots, though these are sometimes lacking. 

* Oberea himaculata Oliv. Family Cerambycidoe. See Comstock and 
Slingerland, Bulletin 23, Cornell Univ. Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 122. 



406 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Life History. — The beetles appear in early summer and the 
females girdle the young tips by cutting two rings around the 
shoot about an inch apart, causing the tip to wither and droop. 
Between these rings will be found a small dark spot where the 
female has inserted an egg in the cane. A rather large, elliptical, 
yellow egg is placed in the pith of the cane and in a few days 
hatches into a small white grub. The larvse burrow downward 
through the pith of the stems, the burrows winding from side 
to side and frequently penetrating the side of the stem, where 
openings are made every few inches, through which long strings 




Fig. 339. — The raspberry cane-borer (Oberea bimaculata Oliv.): adult, larva, 
and larval castings — all enlarged. (After Lugger.) 

of excrement are cast out. By fall they are bored to the base 
of the cane, in which they hibernate over winter. The full- 
grown larva is about one inch long, of a dull yellow color, with 
a small dark-brown head. The body is quite cyUndrical and 
the segments constricted as shown in Fig. 339. The pupal stage is 
passed in the burrow during the spring. Although it has been 
generally assumed that the life cycle is passed in a single year, there 
is some reason for believing that two years may be required. The 
eggs are usually laid only in the young tips, but Comstock and 
Slingerland found larvse somewhat over half grown which had 
made burrows only two inches long in old canes in late July, and 
Professor Webster has secured larvse over half grown in early 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO RASPBERRY AND BLACKBERRY 407 



June. Possibly, therefore, two years may be required for maturing 
a generation, and the fact that the pest does not increase may be 
due to the cutting back of the injured tips of the young canes. 

Control. — As soon as the tips are seen to droop they should 
be cut off below the point girdled and burned. When the entire 
canes die from the effect of being tunneled, they should be cut 
in late summer before the larvae have gone to the base to hiber- 





FiG. 340. — Egg of the rasp- 
berry cane-borer, showing 
girdling of cane. (Photo 
by Headlee.) 



Fig. 341. — Young grubs and exit hole 
of the raspberry cane-borer. (Photo 
by Headlee.) 



nate. Where such measures are practised the pest may be effec- 
tively controlled. 

The Striped Tree-Cricket * 

Professor Parrott has recently shown in an interesting bulletin 
from the New York station that the tree-cricket which most 
frequently attacks the raspberry is not, as had been supposed, 
the snowy tree-cricket (Oecanthus niveus DeG.) but a different 
species, the one named above. The snowy cricket confines its 
attentions more to apple and other tree fruits. 

* Oecanthus nigricornis Walker. Family Gryllidoe. See Parrott and Ful- 
ton, Bulletin 388, N. Y. (Geneva) Agr. Exp. Sta. 



408 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 




Fig. 342. — The snowy tree- 
cricket (Oecanthus nigricornis 
Walker): a, female; 6, male. 
(After Summers.) 



When the canes fail to put out leaves in the spring and are 

found to be dead, this often proves to 
be due to a long ragged wound like 
that shown in Fig. 343a. "If the 
rough surface of the wound be cut 
away with a knife, the injury will be 
found to consist of a longitudinal 
series of punctures placed close to- 
gether. By splitting the cane the 
nature of the injury can be seen even 
better. Such a section is shown at h 
in the figure. The punctures extend 
through the woody part of the cane in- 
to the pith, and here there is in each 

an oblong, cylindrical egg. One of these eggs 

is represented enlarged at c. The insect 

which thus seriously injures the raspberry 

canes in preparing a safe receptacle for its 

eggs is a deUcate greenish-white cricket. 

Fig. 342 represents the male. Its wing-covers 

are crossed by oblique thickenings or ribs, 

which form part of the musical apparatus of 

the insect. The female, Fig. 342a, differs 

somewhat in appearance from the fact that 

the wing-covers are wrapped closely about 

the body, making the insect much narrower 

than her mate." (Comstock and Slinger- 

land.) The cry of these tree-crickets is well 

known, sounding much Hke that of the katy- 
did, but is less rasping and more monoton- 
ous. They are heard in early evening until 

well into the night, and in the North their 

chirp is the most noticeable of all the insect 

noises at that time. This species is quite yig. 343-Raspberrystem 

widely distributed and frequently oviposits injured by the snowy 

in the tender twigs of fruit trees, which are 

similarly injured, and in the stalks of cotton 

and various woody weeds. 

Life History. — The eggs are laid in the fall 

and hatch in the late spring. The nymphs 



tree-cricket: a, wound 
made by egg - punc- 
tures; h, longitudinal 
section through same 
showing eggs in path; 
c, egg enlarged; d, cap 
of egg, more enlarged. 
(After Riley.) 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO RASPBERRY AND BLACKBERRY 409 



feed mostly on plant-lice and other insects, as do the adults, and 
though they occasionally nibble foliage, they are seldom in- 
jurious, and both nymphs and adults must be regarded as 
beneficial as far as their feeding habits are concerned. In the 
North the nymphs become full grown late in July, and there is 
but one generation a year, but in Texas they become full grown 
late in June and eggs laid in early July hatch in about two 
weeks; nymphs are common in late summer, and the adults of the 
second generation in fall. 

Control. — By examining the canes as soon as the foliage starts, 
those injured may be detected and should be cut out and burned. 
If not numerous enough to do appreciable damage they may be 
ignored. 

The Red-necked Cane-borer * 
Sometimes the canes of raspberry and blackberry are found 
with one or more elongate 
galls, not over one-third 
larger in diameter than the 
normal cane, and usually 
with numerous sHts, which 
have been called the 
' ' gouty gall. ' ' The infested 
shoots may throw out 
leaves, but they rarely rip- 
en fruit and usually die 
during the season. By 
opening the gall it will be 
found that only the bark 
has been injured by a 
spiral channel which 
girdles the stem and causes 
the gall-Kke thickening of 
the bark. Above the swel- 
ling evidence will be 
found of the borer's work 
in the pith, and from one 
to six inches above the 
gall the slender white larve Fig. 344 -The red-necked cane-borer (^^nZ^s 

... ruficolas L ab.) : beetle, larva and gall — all 

Will be found at work. much enlarged. (After Riley.) 

* Agrilus ruficollis Feab. Family Buprestidce. See J. B. Smith, 12th 
Report N. J. Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 373; and F. M. Webster, I.e., p. 000. 





410 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



There seems to be considerable difference in the susceptibility 
of varieties, Dr. Smith observing that the " Wilson" and black- 
cap raspberries are badly infested, while the "Missouri Mam- 
moth" and others were unharmed. 

Life History. — The eggs are laid in June and the young larva 
enters the bark at the axil of a leaf-stem, and eats around the 
stem in a long spiral. By early August the galls commence to 
form where the bark has been girdled, though sometimes no gall 
results from the injury, and the larvae mine into the pith. The 
larvae probably become practically full grown in the fall and 
remain in their burrows over winter, in which they transform to 

pupae in late April, in 
New Jersey, and the 
beetles emerge in late 
May and June. The 
parent beetle is not 
over one-third inch 
long, flattened, with a 
small wide head, and 
tapers at the tip of the 
abdomen. It has brown- 
ish-black wing-covers 
with a bronzy lustre, 
and the neck and thorax 
are coppery-red or 
brassy. The full-grown 
larva is five-eighths to 
three-quarters inch 
long, with a small 
brown head, a much- 
expanded prothorax 
which looks like the head, and a slender, cylindrical, white body, 
surmounted by two slender brown horns at the tip of the abdomen. 
This cane-borer is a native pest, very common in wild rasp- 
berries and blackberries, and occurs generally throughout the 
country. 

Control. — Obviously it may be readily controlled by cutting off 
the infested canes below the galls and burning them. This should 
be done any time before May. Where wild canes are infested 
near those cultivated they should be included in the pruning. 




-t^ 



Fig. 345. — Work of the red-necked cane-borer: 
a, tracks of young larvae the bark sliced away 
to show burrows and forming gall ridges; 6, sec- 
tion through galls on main cane and lateral 
showing track of larva through bark and pith 
and pupal cell. (After J. B. Smith.) 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO RASPBERRY AND BLACKBERRY 411 



The Blackberry Gall-maker * 

The so-called "pithy gall" of the blackberry is an elongated, 
pithy swelHng from one to three inches long and nearly an inch 
in diameter, red or reddish-brown, with the surface divided by 
deep longitudinal furrows into four or five ridges or parts. The 
gall is caused by the larvse 
of a small black gall-fly, 
which is about one-twelfth 
inch long, with red feet 
and antennae and four 
transparent wings, almost 
lacking wing-veins. The 
insect passes the winter in 
the larval stage in the galls, 
and if one be opened at 
that season, there will be 
found about the middle a 
number of cells about one- 
eighth inch long, each of 
which contains a single 
larva. The larva "is 
about one-tenth inch long, 
white, with the mouth- 
parts reddish, and the 
breathing pores and an oval 
spot on each side behind 
the head of the same color." 
They change to pupae in 
spring and the flies appear Fig. .346.— The pitliy-gall of the blackberry: a, 
^ rp/ 1 gall; 0, section oi same showing larvsB in cells; 

a little later. 1 hough c, larva enlarged and natural size; d, pupa, 
this gall is also very com- (After Riley.) 

mon on wild canes it rarely does much injury. 

Control. — The affected canes should be cut and burned during 
the winter. 

The Raspberry-cane Maggot f 

The tips of young raspberry shoots sometimes droop and wilt 
in the spring in much the same manner as when affected by the 

* Diastrophus turgidus Bass. Family Cynipidcp. 

t Phorbia rubivora Coquillet. Family Anthomyidoe. See Slingerland, 
Bulletin 126, Cornell Univ. Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 54; W. H. Lawrence, Bulletin 
62, Wash. Agr. Exp. Sta. 




412 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

cane-borer later in the season, and though blackberry shoots are 
similarly affected they usually recover, but bear small gall-like 
swellings Hke those shown in Fig. 348. This is the work of a 




Fig. 347. — The raspberry cane-maggot {Phorbia rubiuora Coquillet) : a, adult 
female fly; much enlarged; b, raspiaerry shoots girdled by the maggot, 
natural size; c, egg much enlarged; d, tips of shoots each bearing an egg 
in natural position in the leaf axils, natural size. (After Slingerland.) 

small white maggot, nearly related to and looking much the same 
as the cabbage-maggot which girdles the inner bark of the stem. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO RASPBERRY AND BLACKBERRY 413 




Injury has been observed in New York, Canada, Michigan, 
Pennsylvania, and recently it has become a serious pest in Wash- 
ington, so that it is undoubtedly much more widely distributed 
than the records indicate. The parent fly, shown in Fig. 347, is 
grayish-black, much resembling the house-fly, but slightly smaller. 

Life History.— The flies appear in April and deposit their eggs 
as soon as the shoots are well above ground, continuing until early 
June. The white egg (Fig. 
347, c) is elongate, about one- 
fifteenth inch long, and is laid 
in the axil of a young leaf at 
the tip of a shoot (Fig. 347, d). 
The egg hatches in a few days, 
and the little maggot burrows 
into the pith of the shoot, leav- 
ing a conspicuous entrance 
hole, which becomes blackish. 
It tunnels downward, making 
a small tortuous channel, and 
after boring for a few days 
about half way down the shoot, 
it works its way out to just 
beneath the bark and tunnels around the shoot, often in a spiral, 
so as to girdle it completely, and usually eats a small hole through 
the bark at this point. The maggot continues to feed on the 
pith at this point so as nearly to sever the shoot, the tip of which 
soon wilts and droops, turning a deep blue color. On blackberry 
shoots, however, the bark is so thick that although the tip droops 
for a few days, it usually revives and the girdling forms a circular, 
gall-like swelling, though even blackberries are often killed. 
Affected shoots usually branch from below the girdled point, 
making a bushy growth. Lawrence states that later in the 
season lateral shoots are also attacked. He also observes that 
maggots never develop in living canes. The maggot continues 
to burrow downward in the pith and becomes full grown in June, 
when it pupates at the lower end of the burrow. The puparia 
are to be found in the lower part of the affected stalk in June 
and July, but the adult flies do not emerge until the next spring. 

Control. — As soon as the young tips are seen to droop they 



Fig. 348. — Gall-like swelling one living 
blackberry canes caused by the rasp- 
berry cane-maggot. (After Lawrence.) 



414 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

should be cut off several inches below the girdled point and 
burned. This may be done best late in May or in June after all 
the eggs are laid. 

The Raspberry Saw-fly * 

Occasionally raspberry leaves, as well as those of blackberry 
and dewberry, are skeletonized in May by small green, spiny 
saw-fly larvae, which sometimes quite defoliate the plant. Such 
injury has been commonly noted in the Eastern and Central 
States. The adult female is a typical saw-fly about one-quarter 
inch long and with a wing expanse of one-half inch. The body 
and wings are black except the second and sixth abdominal seg- 
ments, which are yellowish-white, and the under side is rusty. 
The male is somewhat smaller and is entirely black except the 
shoulders, which are yellowish-white. 

Life History. — The adults appear about the middle of May 
in central New York, and the females deposit their eggs late in 
that month. The eggs are inserted just under the cuticle of the 
under surface of the leaf, and the tissue around them turns 
yellowish, so that infested leaves soon become spotted on the upper 
surface. The egg is nearly pear-shaped, yellowish-white, about 
one-twentieth inch long, and hatches in seven to ten days. As 
many as twenty-four eggs have been observed in a single leaf, and 
frequently the leaves are so spotted as to be readily recognized. 
The young larva is about one-twelfth inch long, yellowish-white or 
pale yellowish-green and well covered with spiny tubercles, the 
spines being first white and later dark brown. The young larvae feed 
on the soft parts of the leaf, but as they grow older all but the midrib 
and larger veins are devoured. The mature larva is about three- 
quarters inch long, from light yellowish-green to darkgreen, closely 
simulating the color of the foliage, and the body is covered with 
transverse rows of tubercles, bearing a varying number of strong, 
barbed spines, which are dark brown on the back and pale green 
or white along the sides. The larva feeds for about ten days and 
then enters the soil for from two to three inches and thete con- 
structs a small oval cocoon about one third inch long, which looks 
like a pellet of earth, being formed of a brown mucilaginous sub- 

* Monophadnus ruhi Harris. Family TenthredinidoB. See V. H. Lowe, 
Bulletin 150, N. Y. Agr. Exp. Sta. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO RASPBERRY AND BLACKBERRY 4 1 5 

r 

i 

stance, interwoven with coarse strands of silk, to which particles of 
earth adhere. The larva then hibernates until the next spring, 
when it transforms to the pupa and in a few days the adult ap- 
pears, usually early in May, 

Control. — By suddenly jarring or shaking the bushes the 
larvse will be shaken to the soil. On light soils this habit may 




y 



Fig. 349. — The raspberry saw-fly (Monophadnus rubi Harr.) : a, male; h, 
female; c, egg blisters on leaf; d, larva; e, cocoons — all much enlarged. 
(After Lowe.) 

be utilized for their destruction by jarring them to the ground 
and following with cultivators so as to bury the larvae in the 
loose soil. This will be particularly applicable in hot weather, 
if the soil is hot and dusty, when most of the larvse will be killed 
before regaining the plants. By frequent cultivation in late 
summer or fall the cocoons might be brought to the surface and 
some of the larvse might be thus killed during the winter, though 



416 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

this needs testing, as they are fairly well protected. The larvae 
may be readily killed with arsenical sprays, and if arsenate of 
lead were applied at the rate of 3 pounds per barrel just as the 
plants commence to flower, it would undoubtedly control the 
pest with no possibility of spotting the fruit, or Paris green with 
Bordeaux mixture might be used in the same way. If careful 
watch is kept for the pest it can probably be detected in time to 
apply the arsenicals, which will be much the easiest and most 
effective to use, but if not observed until the canes are fruiting 
they should be sprayed with hellebore, 1 ounce to 1 gallon of 
water. Hellebore may be dusted on the plants mixed with twice 
its weight of flour, but the spraying may be done more thoroughly. 

The Raspberry B3rturus * 

The Raspberry Byturus is a small brown beetle belonging 
to the same family as the larder and carpet beetles, most of which 
feed on animal matter. It is about one-seventh inch long, red- 
dish-yellow or reddish-brown, 
and covered with a thick coat 
of pale, tawny hairs. The 
beetles appear about the midde 
of May in northern Ohio. They 

feed on the tender foliage and 
Fig. 350. — Larva and adult of the , • . .^ n ■, i i 

raspberry byturus— enlarged. (After eat mto the flower buds, and 
Goodwin.) sometimes emerge in such 

numbers that the young foliage is skeletonized and many of the 
flower buds do not develop. Though the eggs are laid in June, 
they have not been observed. The larvse appear in late June and 
July and feed in the fleshy head on which the berry is born, caus- 
ing the affected berries to ripen earlier, making them small and 
unfit for market. Furthermore the little larvae not infrequently 
remain in the cup of the berry, which necessitates picking the 
berries over and injures their sale. The larva is about one- 
quarter inch long, rather plump and cyhndrical, and tapering 
at each end. The body is white, but each segment is marked 
across the back with a broad, tawny yellow band, and nunierous 

* Byturus unicolor Say. Family DermestidcB. See W. H. Goodwin, 
Bulletin 202, Ohio Agr. Exp. Sta. 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO RASPBERRY AND BLACKBERRY 417 



short white hairs. When full grown the larva drops to the 
ground and forms an earthen cell just beneath the surface, in 
which it transforms to a yellowish pupa, from which the beetle 
emerges the next spring. Only red raspberries seem to be affected, 
and some varieties are particularly injured. The insect has been 




Fig. 351. — ^Early ripening berries, the smaller ones infested with Byturus 
larvae. (After Goodwin.) 

reported as injurious from Minnesota to Massachusetts and in 
Ontario. 

Control — Inasmuch as the beetles feed freely on the foliage 
before ovipositing they may be destroyed by sprajdng the leaves 
with arsenate of lead. Mr. Goodwin has shown that where 
foliage was sprayed with 4 pounds per barrel, that three-fourths 
of the subsequent injury to the berries by the larvae was pre- 
vented by the destruction of the beetles, and the injury to the 
flower buds was also lessened. Thorough cultivation in the fall 
close around tne bushes will probably destroy many of the pupae 
by exposing them to winter weather. 



CHAPTER XXII 
INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE CURRANT AND GOOSEBERRY. 

The Imported Currant-borer * 

One of the worst pests of the currant and gooseberry is the 
borer, v/hich tunnels out the canes and where abundant frequently 
kills the plants. It is a European insect which has spread to 




Fig. 352. — The imported currant-borer (Sesia iipuliformis Clerck): moth, 
larva, and empty pupal skin left protruding from burrow. (After 
Lugger.) 

all parts of this country where these fruits are grown. The 
adult is one of the clear-winged moths and with the larva is very 
similar in appearance and habits to the raspberry root-borer 
The moth is about one-half inch long with a wing-expanse of 
three-quarters inch. The body is black with a steel-blue lustre, 
with a bright yellow band around the neck and three yellow 
bands across the abdomen, which bears a large tuft of long scales 
at the tip. The wings are clear except for a margin of blackish 
scales and a band across the fore-wings about one-third from 
the tip. 

* Sesia tipuliformis Clerck. Family SesiidoE. See Lugger, 1st Report- 
Minn. State Entomologist, p. 184. 

418 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CURRANT AND GOOSEBERRY 419 

Life History. — The moths appear in June and deposit their 
small globular, brown eggs in the axils of the leaves next the 
canes, or under scales or in cracks of the canes. The young 
caterpillars bore into the pith of the canes, which they tunnel out, 
and are about half grown by winter, when they descend to the 
bottom of the burrows and hibernate. In the spring they con- 
tinue their work and become full grown by May. The full- 
grown larva is slightly over one-half inch long, of a yellowish 
color, with brown head, and with numerous small tubercles over 
the body. It cuts a hole through the side of the burrow, which 
it closes with small chippings, and then transforms to the pupa. 
When the moth is ready to emerge the pupa wriggles itself partly 
out of the burrow by means of the strong spines on the abdomen, 
and the moth comes forth. Affected canes can be recognized 
by the dwarfed and yellow foliage and the general unhealthy 
appearance of the plant, and if not removed will usually die during 
the season. 

Control. — The only method of control is to keep all the old 
wood removed and to cut out and burn all affected canes in fall 
or early spring, whenever the injury may best be detected. 

The Currant-stem Girdler * 

In late spring, after the young currant-shoots have reached 
a growth of several inches, two or three inches of the tips some- 
times wilt, and fall over and hang suspended or drop to the ground. 
If examination shows that the tip has been girdled by several 
sharp cuts, it is probably the work of the Currant-stem Girdler. 
It is a native insect which was first described from Massachusetts, 
and has also been found injurious in Rhode Island, Canada, Ohio 
and Michigan, but has been most troublesome in New York. 
It has also been noted as a pest of willow and poplar in Mary- 
land, and of basket willow in Kentucky, Indiana, and Ohio, so 
that it is doubtless quite generally distributed. The adult insect 
is a slender saw-fly with shining black body and light brownish 
legs, shown natural size in Fig. 353a. The male is smaller and 
has a brownish-yellow abdomen, while in the female the first 

* Janus integer Norton. Family Tenthredinidce. See Slingerland, Bul- 
letin 126, Cornell Univ. Agr. Exp. Sta.; F. H. Chittenden, Bulletin No. 46, 
Bureau of Forestry, pp. 68-70. 




1' 






Fig. 353. — The currant stem-girdler (Janus integer Norton): a, female at 
work girdling a currant stem — natural size; b, girdled portion of stem 
much enlarged to show character of girdle; c, stem cut open to show 
egg; d, egg — much enlarged. (After Slingerland.) 

420 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CURRANT AND GOOSEBERRY 421 



half of the abdomen is reddish-orange and the rest is black. The 
adults are abroad in May, but are very shy and are seldom seen. 
They are saw-flies in the truest sense of that term, for the female 
makes most effective use of her saw-like ovipositor, as has been 
very interestingly described and illustrated by Professor Shnger- 
land. The ovipositor is thrust into the cane for its whole length, 
and through it the egg is deposited in the pith. The egg is an 
elongate-oval shape, yellowish-white, and about one-twenty-fifth 
inch long (Fig. 353d). Immediately the female moves an inch 
or two higher and girdles 
the stalk by numerous 
thrusts of her ovipositor, 
which is thrust in and then 
given a twist to one side 
so that it comes out at 
one side of where it was 
forced in, and makes a hori- 
zontal cut. The eggs are 
laid in late May and early 
June and hatch in about 
eleven days. The young 
larvge bore into the pith, but 
the tunnel rarely extends 
over six inches below the 
point girdled. The full- Fig. 354.— Currant stem girdled by the 
grown larva is hardly one- stem-girdler. (After Slingerland.) 

half inch long, of a ghstening straw-yellow color, with darker head. 
The thoracic segments are wider than the others and bear rudimen- 
tary feet, and from the tip of the stout, cylindrical abdomen projects 
a horny, brown bifid spine. In the fall the borer cleans out its 
burrow at the lower end and eats a hole through the woody wall 
of the stem to the outer bark, which sinks in at this point. The 
grub then spins a thin silken cocoon about itself, in which it 
hibernates over winter, transforming to a whitish pupa in April, 
from which the adult emerges early in May. The girdling of 
the stalks is the principal injury, and those which harbor the pest 
may be recognized, even in winter, by the characteristic dead 
stubs, cut off squarely at the upper end. 




422 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Control. — The drooping of the tips in May is soon noticed 
and during June they should be cut off about three inches lower 
down and burned, or if the pruning is left until winter the infested 
stubs should be cut off about eight inches below the point girdled, 
as the larvae rarely tunnel deeper. 

The Four-lined Leaf -bug * 

This is one of our most common leaf-bugs, which has a long 
list of food plants, but is particularly injurious to the young 
fohage of currant and gooseberry. The adult bug is easily 
recognized, as the upper surface is a 
dark green with four stripes and the 
tips of the wing-covers black, as shown 





Fig. 355. — The four-lined leai-hug (PcBcilocapsiis lineatus Fab.): a, adult; 
6, cross-section of stem showing eggs in position and a single egg greatly 
enlarged. (After Slingerland.) 

in Fig. 355. The green changes to yellow after death and the body 
is bright orange-yellow, and the legs green. The "presence of the 
pest is indicated by the appearance of the pecuKar brown depressed 
spots on the tender terminal leaves" in early summer. "As the 
attack continues, whole leaves turn brown, curl up, become brittle, 
and are torn or broken by the wind. The young shoot is checked 
and frequently droops and dies. The buds of dahlias and roses are 
often blasted." Slingerland gives a list of some fifty-seven food- 
plants, including all sorts of crops, ornamental plants and weeds. 



* Pcecilocapsus lineatus Fab. Family Capsidoe. 
etin 58, Cornell Univ. Agr. Exp. Sta. 



See Slingerland, Bui- 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CURRANT AND GOOSEBERRY 423 



Parsnip, mint, sage, rose, deutzia, dahlia, and others are often 
badly injured. The species has been observed from Canada to 
Georgia and westward to the Dakotas, so that it is probably 
generally distributed east of the Rockies. 

Life History. — The nymphs hatch from the overwintering eggs 
in late May and early June and are very largely responsible 
for the injury to the foliage. The newly hatched nymph is only 
about one-twentieth 
inch long, but is easily 
recognized by the shin- 
ing vermilion-red color 
of the body, marked 
with large blackish 
spots on the thorax and 
with greenish-black 
antennse and legs. The 
nymphs grow rapidly, 
becoming full grown in 
seventeen to twenty 
days after hatching, 
during which time they 
have molted five times. 
The full-grown nymph 
is about one-fifth inch 
long, bright orange 
yellow, and the black 
wing-pads extend half 
way to the end of the Fig. 356. — Currant leaf spotted by the nymphs 

of the four-hned leaf-bug. (After Slingerland.) 
abdomen and bear a 

yellowish green stripe near the outer margin. The nymphs feed 
on the tenderest young leaves, sucking out the juices and soft 
tissue through their tiny beaks, and thus causing the spots 
mentioned. "As the nymphs increase in size the spots are a Kttle 
larger and more numerous, until not only hundreds occur on a 
single leaf, but often nearly all the parenchyma is taken from 
the leaf." The nymphs are very active and dart from one side 
of the leaf to the other when disturbed. The adult bugs appear 
about the middle of June and are active for a month or more, when 
they disappear. They mate and the females commence to lay 




424 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



eggs about a week after they first appear. The female is furnished 
with a strong ovipositor with which she inserts the eggs in slits cut 
lengthwise into the stems of the plants extending nearly half way 
through the pith. A half-dozen or more eggs are packed together 
in the small slit, which may be one-eighth inch long. The indi- 
vidual egg is about one-sixteenth inch long, light yellow, and shaped 
as in Fig. 355e, with the upper third capped by a white, finely 
striated portion. ''With the growth of the surrounding tissue of 
the stem, the eggs are usually forced out of the slit somewhat, so 
that about one-half ... of the white portion of the egg pro- 
jects from the sht." Most of the slits are made two or three 
inches, rarely over six inches, below the tender tips. 

Control. — Experiments indicate that the nymphs may be 




Fig. 357. — Currant leaves killed by the four-lined leaf-bug. (After Slinger- 

land.) 

killed by spraying them with kerosene emulsion containing 10 
per cent kerosene. Tobacco extracts should also be tried. The 
adults are not susceptible to this treatment, however. Both 
nymphs and adults will drop from the foliage when disturbed, 
and Professor Slingerland has suggested that they might be jarred 
into a pan of kerosene. By drawing pans, such as constructed 
for combating the pea-aphis, between the rows and jarring the 
bugs into them, many might be destroyed. As the eggs are 
readily recognized, the tips containing them should be cut off 
and destroyed during the winter. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CURRANT AND GOOSEBERRY 425 



The Currant-aphis * 

The young foliage of currants, and sometimes of gooseberries, 
is often found curled up in late spring with many bladder-like 
galls on the leaves, inside of which are found the numerous 
yellowish-green plant-lice which have caused them. The wing- 
less females are about one-twelfth inch long, yellowish-green 
or green, mottled with darker shades, and with bright red eyes. 
The winged female is slightly longer, with wings expanding one- 
third inch. It is bright greenish-yellow, with pale olive head, 
thoracic lobes brown, and the abdomen is marked by several dark 




Fig. 358. — Currant foliage curled by aphids. (After Lowe.) 
transverse bands and lateral spots. It is an old European 
species and is probably found throughout the United States where 
currants are grown. 

Life History. — The life history is practically the same as that 
of several other aphids previously described and need not be 
rehearsed m detail. The small black eggs are found on the 
stalks in winter and hatch just as the foliage appears. The aphids 
multiply on the fohage, causing it to curl as described, until 
midsummer, when they either migrate to some other food-plant 
or become greatly reduced m numbers through the attacks of 
parasites and predaceous insects, which are very effective in the 

* Myzus ribis Linn. P'amily ApUdidce. See V. H. Lowe, Bulletin 139, 
N. Y. Agr Exp. Sta , p. 660, Another species, Rhopalosiphum ribis Linn., 
is also common on currant and is described and figured by Mr. Lowe. 



426 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

control of this species. Mr. Lowe states that a few females may 
be found on the foliage throughout the summer. In late October 
winged males appear and mate with the true females, which then 
lay the eggs. 

Control. — The aphids may be readily killed by spraying with 
kerosene emulsion, whale-oil soap, 1 pound to 6 gallons of water, 
or tobacco extracts, but the spraying must be done before the 




Pig. 359. — ^The imported currant-worm (Pteronus ribesii Scop.): a, male and 
female saw-flies; b, larvs; c, pupa; d, cocoon; e, eggs — all enlarged. (After 
Lugger.) 

foliage becomes badly curled. Ordinarily they may be held 
in check by picking off the curled leaves by hand. 

The Imported Currant-worm * 

" The most destructive insect that attacks the currant," says 
Professor Lugger, " is the above-named saw-fly, which feeds 

* Pteronus ribeeii Scpp. Family TenthredinidcB. See Lugger, Bulletin 
43 Minn. Exp. Agr. Sta., 179; C. L Marlatt, Bulletin 3, T ch. Series, 
Div Ent., p. 61. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CURRANT AND GOOSEBERRY 427 

indiscriminately on all kinds of currants and gooseberries. The 
imported species is supposed to have been accidentally introduced 
into this country about the year 1857, and has since spread over 
the greater part of the United States and Canada. The eggs are 
glued to the main-ribs of the leaf as shown in Fig 359, and not 
inserted into pockets, as is usually the case with saw-flies. . . . 
In from four to ten days the egg hatches into a very small whitish 
caterpillar with a white head and ornamented with black spots 
on each side. This color, however, changes to green as soon as 
the caterpillars begin to feed, and after their first skin is shed, 
the head becomes black and many black spots appear on the body. 
This coloration persists until the last molt when the insect becomes 
grass-green. The head, however, retains the black spots on 
each side. The length of the worm is now about three-fourths 
of an inch. While growing they at first skeletonize the leaves; 
later they eat the entire leaf, with the exception of the ribs, and at 
last they devour immense quantities of them, often completely 
stripping the bushes of their foliage. If this is repeated year after 
year, the plants produce less and less fruit and eventually die. 
The larvae now descend to the ground, in which they spin a small, 
oval cocoon of brownish silk, either just below the surface of 
the ground or among the leaves and rubbish that collect below the 
plants. Inside these cocoons they change to pupae and later 
to adults, which are ready to issue as winged saw-flies during the 
last of June or in July (in Minnesota), sometimes not until the 
first of August. They now pair and produce a new generation 
of injurious worms. . ., the adults of which do not, however, 
issue until the following spring. As the two broods overlap, 
we can find larvae of all stages during the greater part of the 
summer." The adult saw-flies are well illustrated in Fig. 359. 
The female is about one-third inch long, of a light yellowish color 
marked with blackish as shown in the figure, while the male is 
smaller and rather darker. 
Control. — See next insect. 

The Native Currant-worm * 

The native currant-worm is not usually so destructive as the 
European species, but occasionally, becomes injurious and is 

* Gymnonychus appendiculatus Hartig. Family Tenthredinidoe. 



428 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

widely distributed, occurring from New England to Minnesota 
and Colorado, in British Columbia, and probably in the Pacific 
States. The larva is about two-thirds the size of the imported 
species, but is uniformly pale-green except the head which is 
black until the last molt, after which it becomes partly green. 
One generation of larvae appears in late June and another in 
August. The cocoons are usually attached to the twigs or 
leaves of the bushes. The female saw-fly is dull black with dull 
yellow head, and honey-yellow legs. 

Control. — While fruiting the foliage should be dusted or sprayed 
with hellebore, which is the time-honored remedy for currant- 
worms. However, before the fruit has set and after it is picked, 
spraying with arsenicals will be much cheaper and more effective, 
and as it is often desirable to spray gooseberries for diseases with 
Bordeaux mixture, by adding arsenate of lead or Paris green 
to it, the worms may be easily controlled. 

The Currant Span-worm * 

The Currant Span-worm is readily distinguished from the 
other currant "worms," by being one of the measuring-worms 
or inch-worms which loop along as shown in Fig. 360. It is not 
frequently very destructive, but occasionally becomes a pest, 
more particularly of black currants and gooseberries, throughout 
the eastern half of the country. The caterpillar is slightly over 
an inch long when full grown, and of a whitish color with a wide 
yellow stripe down the back, another along each side, and several 
black spots on each segment. The under side is white with a 
slight pinkish tinge, with a broad yellow median stripe, and is also 
spotted with black. The moth has a wing expanse of about \\ 
inches, is a pale yellowish color, with several brownish spots, 
varying in size and sometimes forming one or two irregular bands 
across the wings. 

Life History. — The eggs (Fig. 360a) are laid in midsummer on 
the twigs of the infested plants and hatch as the bushes come 
into full leaf the next spring. The caterpillars become full 
grown in three or four weeks, when they pupate just beneath 
the surface of the soil, and two or three weeks later the moths 
emerge. 

* Cymatophora ribearia Fitch. Family Geometridce. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO'CURRANT AND GOOSEBERRY 429 

Control. — Hellebore is not as effective as against the saw-fly 
larvae and as the larvae usually appear before the fruit is setting, 
they may be better controlled by spraying with arsenicals. When 
the caterpillars are disturbed they drop from the foliage, letting 
themselves down by a silken thread and remaining suspended in 






Fig. 360. — -The currant span-worm {Cymatomorpha riberia Fitch): 1, 2, larvae; 
3, pupa; a, egg; b, eggs on twig; c, moth — a, much enlarged, others natural 
size. (After Saunders.) 

mid-air until danger is over, when they reascend the thread. 
This habit may be utiKzed for their destruction by jarring the 
bush so that they will drop, and then passing a forked stick around 
it so that all the threads may be caught and the caterpillars may 
be drawn out in groups and crushed with the foot. 



The Currant-fly * 

Currants and gooseberries sometimes turn red and drop pre- 
maturely, due to the injury by small maggots which may be found 
within them. The insect has been troublesome in Maine and is 
sometimes a serious pest in Colorado. It is a native insect and is 
probably generally distributed throughout the northern United 
States and southern Canada. The adult fly is about the size of 

* Epochra canadensis Loew. Family Trypetidce. See F. L. Harvey, 
Bulletin 35, Maine Agr. Exp. Sta. 



430 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

a house-fly, a pale yellowish or yellowish-brown color, with dark 
bands across the wings, and a tapering abdomen, as shown in 
Fig. 361. 

Life History. — The flies appear in late spring and the females 
deposit their eggs in the older berries. A female will lay about 
200 eggs during the period of a month, placing but one in a berry, 
so that a single fly may do considerable damage. The white egg 
is about one-twentj^-fifth inch long and laid just under the skin, 
where it is easily seen. The egg hatches in a few days into a 




Fig. 361.— The currant-fly (Epochra canadensis Loew.)— much enlarged; 

(After Gillette.) 

small white maggot, which burrows around the berry and then 
feeds upon the seeds. The location of the larva may be seen, as 
the infested currant soon shows a clouded appearance and finally 
turns red and a black spot appears. The maggot becomes full 
grown in about three weeks and then eats its way out of the berry, 
which has usually fallen to the ground. The mature maggot 
enters the soil for about an inch and there changes to the pupa, 
from which the fly emerges the next spring. 

Control— As the maggots usually remain in the berries a few 
days after they drop, all fallen berries should be frequently 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CURRANT AND GOOSEBERRY 431 

picked up and destroyed. Poultry running among the bushes 
will do this very effectually. Other methods will suggest them- 
selves from the above life history, but none seems to have been 
carefully tested. 



CHAPTER XXIII 
INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE GRAPE. * 




The Grapevine Phylloxera f 

This insect is native east of the Rocky Mountains, where it 
has always lived upon wild vines and did not attract attention 
until it was imported into France about 1859, as it does prac- 
tically no damage to the native American grapes. It soon spread 
through the principal wine districts of southern Europe, where it 

caused immense losses and 
the temporary abandon- 
ment of vineyards, due to 
the fact that the European 
varieties are very suscep- 
tible and readily succumb 
to injury by it. It has 
spread to southern Russia 
and the adjoining count- 
ries of Asia, and Algeria, 
and has been carried to 
New Zealand and South 
Africa. In this country 
it is injurious only in Cal- 
ifornia, where it was imported on French vines about 1874. It 
was first noticed in Sonoma County and since then has spread to 
all the principal grape-growing regions north of Tehachapi and has 
probably destroyed 50,000 acres. 

This aphid exists in several forms, which injure both foliage 
and roots. On the leaves irregular spherical galls are produced, 
and the root-inhabiting form produces galls on the roots. The 

* See A. L. Quaintance, Farmers' Bulletin 284, U. S. Dept. Agr. H J. 
Quayle, Bulletin 192, Cal. Agr. Exp. Sta.; F. Z. Hartzell, Bulletin 331, N. Y. 
Agr. Exp. Sta. 

t Phylloxera vastatrix Planchon. Family Aphididoe. See C. L. Marlatt, 
Farmers' Bulletin 70, U. S. Dept. Agr., and Quayle, 1. c. 

432 



Fig. 362. — The grapevine phylloxera (Phyl- 
loxera vastatrix Flanchon) : a, true sexual 
female, the dark colored area indicating 
the sinp:le egg; b, egg; c, shrivelled female 
after oviposition ; d, foot of same ; e, rud- 
imentary and functionless mouth-parts. 
(After Marlatt, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE GRAPE 



433 



leaf-galls are very common on American grapes, but are no 
indication of the pi'esence of the root form, as the roots are rarely 
injured where the foliage is covered with leaf-galls. On the other 
hand the European varieties rarely exhibit any leaf -galls, but are 
very susceptible to the root phylloxera, which multiplies without 
any external indication of its presence until the vine is seriously 
injured. The injury to the vine is not due so much to the sap 
taken from the vine by the myriads of aphids which may inhal^it 
the roots, as to their poisonous effect on the root tissue and its 
subsequent decay. Wherever the phylloxera attack the roots, 
small swelUngs are pro- 
duced, composed of soft 
tissue which soon decays. 
When such a gall is 
formed at the end of a 
young root, its growth is 
stopped, and on larger 
roots a decay sets in 
which finally girdles the 
root and all below the 
injured point dies. As 
all the roots become 
affected the vine stops 
growing, the leaves be- 
come sickly and yellow- Fig. 363.— Under side of grape leaf showing 
ish, and the vine dies, and ^^^^ ^^used by Phylloxera. (After RHey.) 

the phylloxera disappears from the rotting roots, so that the cause 
of the injury would be obscure were the nature of the injury not 
known. 

Life History. — The life history of the phylloxera is a com- 
phcated one, involving four different forms of aphids; the leaf- 
gall form, the root or destructive form, the winged or colonizing 
form, and the sexual form. The winter eggs are deposited on the 
rough bark of the old wood in the fall and hatch the following 
spring. The young aphids settle on the leaves, where the irrita- 
tion caused by their mouth-parts soon causes a depression around 
each which forms a gall projecting on the lower side of the leaf. 
"In about fifteen days the louse becomes a plump orange-yellow, 
full-grown, wingless female, and fills its gall with small yellow 




434 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



eggs, dying soon after. The eggs hatch in about eight days into 
young females again, hke the parent, and migrate to all parts of 
the vine to form new galls. Six or seven generations of these 
wingless females follow one another throughout the summer, 
frequently completely studding the leaves with galls." In Cali- 
fornia the young hatching from the winter eggs go directly to 
the roots where they give rise to new colonies, there being no 
gall forms, according to Quayle. Where the leaf-gall females 




Fig. 364. — The grapevine phylloxera: a, winged migrating female; b, last 
stage of nymph of same; c, mouth-parts with thread-like sucking setae 
removed from sheath; d, and e, eggs of male and female, showing sculp- 
turing — all enlarged. (After Marlatt, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

occur many of them probably migrate to the roots during the 
summer, and all do so with the approach of cold weather. In the 
spring the roots are attacked and a series of generations of wingless 
females multiply on them. As there are five to seven generations 
in a season and each female lays from 30 (Quayle) to 100 (Marlatt) 
eggs, it is evident that they will soon be numerous enough to 
destroy the vine. The root-inhabiting females are very similar 
to those in the leaf -galls, and are about one-twenty-fifth inch long 
when mature and half as long when young and active. They are 
light greenish-yellow in summer and darker in winter, and when 
numerous the infested roots look as if dusted in spots with pow- 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE GRAPE 



435 



dered mustard, according to Quayle. He states that "the newly- 
hatched insect is fairly active, and at first moves from place to 
place on the roots, but finally, when it reaches the egg-laying 
stage, inserts its sucking-tube into the root and remains fixed." 
During the late summer and early fall some of the root-lice develop 
into winged females which escape through cracks in the soil and 
fly to neighboring vines. They lay from two to four eggs beneath 
the loose bark on the old wood and soon die. "The eggs are of 
two sizes, the smaller 
and fewer in number 
yielding males in nine 
or ten days, and the 
larger the females of 
the only sexed genera- 
tion in the whole life 
round of the insect. 
In this last and sexed 
stage the mouth-parts 
of both sexes are rudi- 
mentary, and no food 
at all is taken. The 
insect is very minute 
and resembles the 
newly hatched louse of either the gall or root form. After fertili- 
zation the single egg of the larva-Hke female rapidly increases 
in size until it fills the entire body of the mother and is laid within 
three or four days, bringing us back to the starting point." * 
The phylloxera has been distributed over the world by infested 
rooted plants or cuttings bearing winter eggs, and it spreads 
locally by means of the winged females, by the escape of the 
young root-lice through ci-acks of the soil and their migration 
to neighboring plants, or by bits of infested roots being spread 
in cultivation, and by the leaf-gall lice being spread to other 
plants by the wind or by being carried by birds or insects. 

Control. — The principal means of control lies in the use of 
resistant vines. These may be varieties which have proven 
successful in the eastern United States, where the insect is native, 
or more commonly the stocks of grapes from the Eastern States 

* Quotations from Marlatt, 1. c. 




Fig. 365. — Grapevine phylloxera: a, root galls; 
b, enlargement of same showing disposition 
of lice; c, root-gall louse — much enlarged. 
(Mter Marlatt, U- S. Dept. Agr.) 



436 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

are grafted with the desired varieties. There is a marked varia- 
tion in the resistance of different species and varieties and not all 
of them can be successfully used as stocks for the desired scions, 
so that the successful use of the method, which is fully outUned 
by Quayle, I.e., requires a considerable knowledge of viticulture. 

Carbon bisulfide has been used very extensively for destroying 
the root-hce, but is expensive and is only appHcable on rich, deep, 
loose, soils. It cannot be used successfully on soils containing 
much clay, or on dry rocky hillsides, or when the soil is saturated 
with moisture, and is most effective on sandy soils where the 
insect is least injurious. It is now seldom used and is considered 
impractical by growers. 

One of the best methods of destroying the root-lice where 
water is available is by submersion. In California the best results 
are secured by flooding with at least six inches of water for a 
week or ten days as soon as the vines have ceased active growth 
in November. A little later two to three weeks' submersion will 
be necessary and in winter thirty-five to forty days. Flooding 
for a couple of days in midsummer seems to destroy some of the 
insects, but its main value is in stimulating a vigorous growth 
of new rootlets. Longer flooding in summer, when the aphids 
might be most easily destroyed, injures the vines. 

On very sandy soils vines are uninjured by the phylloxera. 
All sandy soils are unfavorable to the pest and vines on them die 
more slowly, but to secure complete immunity there must be at 
least 60 per cent of silicious sand. Sands containing clay or 
which form lumps offer less resistance. 

The Grapevine Root-borer * 

The larvae of the Grapevine Root-borer feed in the old roots at 

some Httle distance from the base of the vine, and as there are 

no indications of the pest, its presence may easily pass unnoticed. 

Although not generally recognized as a serious one it has been 

known as a pest of the grape for fifty years, and has been observed 

to do considerable damage in Kentucky and West Virginia. 

Although the vines are not killed, they are so enfeebled that they 

make but little growth and the crop is much curtailed. All 

* Memythrus polistiformis Harris. Family Sesiidce. See Fred E. Brooks, 
Bulletin 110, W. Va. Agr. Exp. Sta., and Bulletin 730, U. S. Dept. Agr. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE GRAPE 437 

varieties are affected in West Virginia, including the wild fox 
grape, Vitis labrusca. It is stated that in the South the Scupper- 
nong, or southern wild fox grape, is immune from attack. The 
species has been observed from Minnesota and Kansas eastward 
through Ohio and Kentucky to West Virginia and North Carohna. 
The parents of the borers are clear-winged moths nearly 




Fig. 366. — The grapevine root-borer (Memythrus polistiformis Harris) : male 
and female moths on wild lettuce leaf under grapevine — natural size. 
(From Brooks.) 

related to the peach-tree borer, currant-borer, and raspberry- 
borer. The females are seven-eighths inch long with wings expand- 
ing 1^ inches. They are a dark lustrous brown color, the fore- 
wings being brown and the hind-wings transparent and bordered 
with brown. The posterior margins of the second and fourth 
abdominal segments are orange or lemon-yellow, and there are 
spots of the same color at the bases of the wings. The males 



438 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

are considerably smaller than the females. The moths fly during 
the day and are readily mistaken for wasps of the genus Polistes. 
The males fly in a quick, wasp-like manner, and when they rest 
on a leaf will occasionally flutter the wings hke an angry wasp, 
which is accompanied by a low buzzing sound, which makes the 
mimicry very effective. 

t Life History. — The eggs are laid singly on weeds, grasses or 

other vegetation in the vineyard or on the bark or leaves of the 

, „...,.-,,, ^ — : — ^. , vines, a single female laying some 400 eggs. 

• The egg is oval, one-twenty-fifth inch long, 
J of chocolate-brown color, and finely pitted 
' and sculptured. They are very readily washed 
off by the rain and drop to the soil, where 
they hatch in about three weeks. The Httle 
- larvae bore directly into the soil, wherever 

Fig. 367. — Egg of ^^ey may be, in search of grape roots, and 
grapevine root- • r- i i •,^ , 

borer v e r y may survive for several days without any 

greatly enlarged, food. Upon reaching a root the larva bores 
through the outer bark and then makes an 
irregular burrow in the softer parts of the bark, which may 
encircle the root several times. As the burrows grow larger 
they run with the grain of the wood, and as they are enlarg- 
ed with the growth of the larva, only the outer bark is left 
on roots one-half inch or less in diameter, the interior being 
tunnelled out and filled with the castings of the larva. Most 
of the larvae feed a foot or so from the base of the vine, though one 
was found on a root nine feet from the base. The larvse bore in 
the roots until the second fall, when they are about full grown and 
make cells or hibernacula, thinly fined with silk, in which they 
hibernate in the root. The larva becomes full grown the next 
spring and is then 1| to If inches long, of the general shape 
shown in Fig. 368, yellowish-white, with a small brown head, three 
pairs of brown thoracic legs, and five pairs of abdominal prolegs. 
When ready to pupate the larva comes near the surface of the 
soil and there makes a tough cocoon an inch or so long, composed 
of earth and excrement and fined with silk, and in it transforms 
to a brown pupa with yellow bands around the abdomen. In 
about four or five weeks the pupa wriggles half way out of the 
cocoon and the moth emerges, leaving the empty pupal skin 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE GRAPE 



439 



projecting above the surface of the ground. The moths emerge 
in late July and early August in West Virginia and the eggs are 
laid in a few days. 
Thus the life cycle 
requires two full 
years and larvae of 
two sizes may be 
found in the roots 
at any time, except 
during the pupal 
period, when all will 
be about half to 
two-thirds grown. 
Control. — On ac- 
count of their sub- 
terranean habits it 
is manifestly im- 
possible to dig out 
the borers, as is done 
with similar species 
except for a few 
valuable vines. If 
the Scuppernong is 
as immune as has 
been reported, it 
might be used as 
a stock throughout 
the South, where it 
will thrive. By 
recognizing the par- 
ent moths, they 
may be destroyed by approaching them quietly when at rest and 
striking them quickly with a paddle or board and many might thus 
be killed during the time they arc most abundant. 

By thorough cultivation in June and July many of the cocoons 
will be thrown to the surface or buried so deeply that many of 
the pupse will be destroyed, or the adults will be unable to reach 
the surface. With liberal fertilization, cultivation will stimu- 
late the vine to withstand the injury. Brooks has shown that 
in West Virginia the crested flycatcher (Myiarchus crinitus) 




Fkt. o'lS. — Grapevine root-borers at, work. Five 
Itoieis were feeding in this section when taken from 

size. (Photo by 



the grountl — two-thirds natural 
W. E. Runisey.) 




Fig. 369. — Grape root-worm (Fidia viticida Walsh): beetles feeding on 
foliage — natural size, and enlarged. (After Slingerland.) 

440 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE GRAPE 



441 



feeds upon the moths and may be a factor in the control of the 
pest 

The Grape Root-worm * 

The Grape Root-worm is the larva of a small, hairy, chestnut- 
brown beetle which feeds on the upper surfaces of the leaves 




Fig. 370. — ^The life cycle of the grape root-worm— enlarged and natural size. 
(After Slingerland.) 

eating out series of patches or holes in characteristic chain-like 
feeding marks which afford an easily recognizable indication of the 

* Fidia viticida Walsh. Family Chrysomelidce. See Quaintance, I.e.; 
Hartzell, I.e., and Bulletin 453, N. Y. Agr. Exp. Sta.; M. V. Slingerland, 
Bulletins 184, 208, 224, and 235, Cornell Univ. Agr. Exp. Sta.; E. P. Felt, 
Bulletin 19, Office State Ent. of N. Y.; Fred Johnson, Bulletin 68, Part VI, 
Bureau Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr.; Johnson and Hammar, Bulletin 89, 
ibid. 



442 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



presence of the pest in the vineyard. The larvae devour the smaller 
roots and eat out pits and burrows in the larger roots, and where 
abundant may kill the plants in a year or two, but more commonly 
they cause an enfeebled growth and a consequent failure to produce 
profitable crops. Injury has been most severe in the grape belt 
of western New York, Pennsylvania, and northern Ohio, but the 
species occurs generally throughout the Mississippi Valley and 




Fig. 371. — Eggs of ttie grape root-worm, natural size as seen on grape canes 
above — enlarged below. (After Slingerland.) 

the Eastern States, and has been reported from California. "The 
insect thrives best in vineyards which are neglected, and in the 
absence of cultivation and timely spraying it is likely to become 
a serious pest in any vineyard throughout its range of d^lstribu- 
tion. This is especially the case in light, sandy soils and in regions 
where grape growing is a considerable industry." A nearly 
related species,* has been known to injure the foliage seriously 
* Fidia cana. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE GRAPE 



443 



in Texas, but it is not known whether it affects the roots. In 
Cahfornia, the imported grape root-worm * is sometimes destruc- 
tive, has practically identical habits, and is controlled by the 
same methods. 

The adult beetle is about one-quarter inch long, brownish in 
color, and covered with grayish-white hairs, with a stout body 
and long legs, as .shown in Fig. 369. The full-grown larva is 
about five-eighths inch long, whitish in color, and usually rests 
in a curved position as shown in Fig. 370. The head is shghtly 




Fig. 372. — Portions of three grape root.s denuded of their bark and fibrous 
roots by grape root-worms, and part of a similar root taken from a 
thrifty vine, showing its normal bark and rootlets. Reduced in size. 
(After Slingerland.) 

narrower than the body and yellowish-brown, as are the well- 
marked spiracles on the side of each segment. 

Life History. — The adult beetles appear about the close of the 
blooming period, or in late June and early July in the latitude 
of New York, and live for a month or more. They emerge earher 
on warm, light sandy soils, and later on heavier soils. In a few 

* Adoxus viiis Fourcroy. A small, shining, brown or black beetle, one- 
fifth inch long. See Quayle, I.e. 



444 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

days their feeding commences to be noticed on the leaves and the 
females may be found laying their eggs. A female will lay from 
150 to 900 eggs, averaging about 175, most of which are laid 
during the first two or three weeks. The eggs are laid in masses 
of 25 to 40 beneath the old bark or generally over the canes. 
The individual egg is one-twenty-fifth inch long, at first whitish, 
but soon turns yellow, and tapers at each end. The eggs hatch 
in from nine to twelve days, when the young larvae drop to the 
ground and seek the roots. The young larvse are only one- 
seventeenth inch long, so that they are able to penetrate the soil. 
When established on the roots they feed freely and grow rapidly, 




Fig. 373. — I'he tender pupa of the grape root-worm in its earthen cell, 
enlarged — natural size at n. (After Slingerland.) 

becoming nearly full grown by fall. In the fall they descend 
several inches into the soil and make small earthen cells, in which 
they hibernate. In the spring they return to the roots nearer 
the surface, and those not already full grown feed until growth 
is completed. They then make small earthen cells 2 or 3 inches 
below the surface of the ground in which they transform to pupae. 
These cells are easily broken open and the pupse are thus crushed 
or killed by stirring the soil in cultivation. The pupa, shown 
in Fig. 373e, is one-quarter to one-third inch long, whitish, with 
the head, thorax and tip of the abdomen pinkish, and with spines 
on the head, appendages, and abdomen as illustrated. The pupse 
are most abundant in New York during June, the pupal stage 
lasting about two weeks. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE GRAPE 



445 



Control. — Extensive experiments made by several investigators 
have shown that the beetles may be very largely destroyed by 
thorough spraying with arsenate of lead just as they appear. 
By applying the poison when they are first noticed feeding they 
may be killed off before many of the eggs are laid, and sprayed 
vineyards have shown a reduction of over 90 per cent of the eggs 
found on untreated vines. Arsenate of lead should be appHed at 
the rate of 3 pounds to the barrel as soon as feeding marks are 
found on the foliage, and again a week or ten days later, and 
should be added to the Bordeaux mixture used for the diseases 
of the vine. The spraying must be done with the greatest thor- 
oughness, as the beetles dislike the sprayed foHage and will seek 
out that which has been 
missed. The nozzles on trac- 
tion outfits should therefore 
be arranged so as to hit all 
parts of the vines (see Fig. 
374) and the pump should 
maintain at least 100 pounds 
pressure. With the machines 
in common use not over 7 or 8 
acres a day may be covered 
thoroughly, and about 125 
gallons will be required per 
acre. If the work is hurried 
to cover greater acreage, the treatment will usually be less effec- 
tive. When the infestation is unusually severe cheap molasses 
may be added to the arsenate spray to make it attractive to the 
beetles. 

The beetle is noticeably less destructive in well-cultivated 
vineyards, and it has been shown that thorough cultivation in 
early summer breaks up the pupal cells and destroys large num- 
bers of the pupae. Most of the pupse are within 2 or 3 inches 
of the surface and within 1| or 2 feet from the base of the vine. 
In the fall the earth should be thrown toward the vines to form 
a ridge along the row, so that the larvae will mostly pupate near 
the surface of this ridge. The next spring, when most of the 
larvae have entered the pupal stage, this ridge should be thrown 
away from the vines, thus exposing the pupae. A "horse-hoe" 




Fig. 374. — A power sprayer with noz- 
zles arranged for grape spraying (The 
Bean Spray Pump Co.) 



446 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



commonly used in vineyards is useful in this work, but a hand- 
hoe will need to be used to throw the earth away from the imme- 
diate base of the vine. The soil should then be kept well stirred 
by cultivation at frequent intervals, all of which is merely part 
of good practice, independent of the control of the root-worm. 

The Grapecane Gall-maker * 

The Grapecane Gall-maker is a small reddish-brown snout- 
beetle about one-eighth inch long, which lays its eggs in the 

canes, giving 
rise to galls 
about twice the 
diameter of the 
cane and 1 or 
1| inches long, 
with a deep scar 
in one side. It 
has been noted 
as injurious in 
Ohio and West 
Virginia, and 
fromtherecords 
seems to be gen- 
erally distrib- 
uted over the Eastern States, but is by no means a 
serious pest. 

Life History. — The adult beetles appear in May 
and are gone by early July. They feed sparingly 
on the vine, making httle pits in the tendrils, in the 
buds or bark of new canes or in the midribs on the 
under side of the leaves. The females soon lay their 
eggs and make the egg scars. These cause the galls 

Fig. 375. — The grapecane gall-maker (Ampeloglypter sesostris Lee.) : a, adult 
from above; b, same, side view; c, larva, side view; d, pupa; e, section 
of vine showing galls — all enlarged. (After F. M. Webster.) Natural 
size. (After Brooks.) 

* Ampeloglypter sesostris Lee. Family CurcuUonidce. See Fred E. Brooks, 
Bulletin 119, W. Va. Agr. Exp. Sta..; F. M Webster, Bulletin 116, Ohio 
Agr. Exp. Sta. 




ie 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE GRAPE 447 

and constitute practically the only injury to the vine. The eggs are 
laid just above a joint and beyond the outermost fruit, so that the 
injury does not interfere with the crop. A female eats out a 
small hole with her snout, in it lays a small yellowish-white egg, 
and fills up the hole with fibers scraped off from the surface of 
the cane. She then makes another hole immediately above this, 
but merely places a drop of hquid in it and then fills it up with 
fibers in the same manner. Eight to a dozen holes are thus made 
in a row and filled. Very soon this wound causes a swelKng of 
the vine, but the gall does not reach full size for six or eight weeks. 
On vines producing dark-colored fruit, the wood about the wound 
takes on a purplish color. The galls seem to have but Httle effect 
on the growth and vigor of the vine, except that the canes are 
more readily broken by the wind or in pruning. The larva is a 
little yellowish-white, footless grub about two-fifths inch long, 
which feeds about the egg-chamber and then burrows in the pith. 
It becomes full grown in eight to ten weeks, when it pupates 
within the burrow; the beetle emerges in late August, and 
hibernates over winter. 

As the scar in the side of the gall where the eggs were deposited 
remains open, a very large proportion of the larvae are subse- 
quently parasitized by various chalcis, and tachina-flies, which 
will probably prevent the insect ever becoming much of a pest. 

Control. — The galls may be cut out and burned during July 
or August without any injury to the crop, as they occur beyond 
the fruit, and at that time will contain the larvse or pupae. As 
the beetles feed on the foliage and new growth it is probable 
that but little damage will result in vineyards well sprayed with 
arsenicals for other pests. 

The Grapecane Girdler * 

This beetle is very similar to the last except that it is black 
in color. Its native food-plant is the Virginia creeper, which 
it has deserted in West Virginia, and occasionally elsewhere, 
to attack grape. The species seems to occur generally through 
the Central and Eastern States. 

* Ampeloglypter ater Lee. Family Curculionidce. See Fred E. Brooks, 
Bulletin 119, W. Va. Agr. Exp. Sta. 



448 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Life History. — The life history is almost identical with that 
of the preceding species, the habit of the species differing only 
in the manner of oviposition. The eggs are laid in late May and 
early June. In laying the egg, the female deposits it in the same 
manner as does the previous species, and then instead of placing 
a series of holes in a row she makes them in a ring around the 
cane, only the first one containing an egg. She then goes to 
the next joint above and makes a series of holes around it, com- 
pletely severing it, so that it hangs by a shred and soon drops. 
The httle larva feeds in the pith of the joints on either side of 
the egg puncture, and these two joints die and drop to the ground. 
The larva becomes full grown in about a month and changes to 





Fig. 376. — The grapecane girdler (Ampeloglypter ater Lee): a, egg; b, larva; 
c, pupa; d, beetle — all enlarged. (After Brooks.) 

a pupa in its burrows soon after the dead section drops, first 
filKng the burrow with little pellets of fibres. Two weeks later 
the adult beetle emerges, appearing during late summer. The 
whole life cycle thus requires sixty-five to seventy days. The 
beetles hibernate over winter. 

Control. — The injured canes are quite conspicuous in early 
summer and by cutting them off a few inches below the egg scars 
the eggs and larvae may be removed and destroyed. Brooks is 
of the opinion that the beetles will be largely destroyed in vine- 
yards thoroughly sprayed with arsenicals for other grape insects. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE GRAPE 



449 



The Grape Cane-borer * 
During the spring young grape shoots sometimes suddenly 





break off or droop and die, and 
if examined a small hole will 
be found just above the base 
of the withered shoot, with a 
burrow leading from it into 
the main stem. In this bur- 
row will be found a small 
brown beetle, a half inch long 
(Fig. 378a), which is the cause 
of the injury. It has been 
sometimes called the apple 
twig-borer on account of the 
similar injury which it does to 
apple twigs, and it also 
attacks pear, peach, plum, 
forest and shade trees and 
ornamental shrubs, but it is 
Fig. 377. — Work of the grapecane girdler. (After Brooks.) 

* Amphiceriis bicaudatus Say. Family Ptinidce. See C. L. Marlatt, 
Farmers' Bulletin 70, U. S. Dept. Agr. 



450 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



particularly destructive to the grape. Its injury is most noticed 
in winter and early spring, and frequently results in killing all 
the new growth and sometimes the entire vine. Injury has been 
most severe in the states bordering the Mississippi from Iowa 
southward, where it is one of the most serious insect pests of 
the vine, and though the beetle occurs eastward to the coast it 
rarely does much damage farther east. 




Fig. 378. — The grape nane-borer (Amphicerus bicaudatus Say): a, beetle, 
back and side views; b, pupa; c, larva, with feet enlarged; d, burrow in 
apple twig made by adult; e, larval gallery in tamarisk, with pupa in 
cell at end ; /, injury to young shoots and cane showing entrance of beetle 
near/, and the characteristic wilting and new growth — all much enlarged 
except d, e, f. (After Marlatt, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

"It breeds in dying wood, such as large prunings, diseased 
canes, and also in dying or drying wood of most shade and fruit 
trees. It has also been found by the writer [Marlatt] breeding 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE GRAPE 451 

very abundantly in roots of uprooted maples and in diseased 
tamarisk stems. In old, dry wood it will not breed, so far as 
known, nor in vigorous live growth, but seems to need the dying 
and partially drjdng conditions mentioned. The insect has but 
one brood yearly. The beetles mature for the most part in the 
fall, and generally remain in their larval burrows until the follow- 
ing spring. A few may leave the burrows in the fall and con- 
struct others in the twigs of apple or other plants in which to 
hibernate. In the spring, however, they begin their destructive 
work early, burrowing into the axils of the grape and occasionally 
also into other plants. This is undoubtedly partly for food, but 
seems largely malicious, for it certainly has nothing to do with 
egg-laying. . . . The eggs are laid chiefly in May or April in 
its southern range, and the larvae develop during summer, trans- 
forming to beetles and pupae in the fall. On the Pacific coast 
a closely allied, but somewhat larger species {Amphicerus puncti- 
pennis Lee.) . . . probably has similar . . . habits . . ." 

Control. — All diseased wood and prunings should be removed 
in late spring, thus destroying the material in which the larvae 
develop. If this is neglected and the beetles appear in the vine- 
yard, the only means of stopping their depredations is to cut 
out by hand the affected parts and destroy the beetles. On 
warm days the beetles may sometimes be collected while running 
over the vines. 

The Grapevine Flea-beetle * 

When the grape buds are swollen in the spring they are often 
attacked by numbers of little blue or greenish beetles which eat 
out or entirely consume them. When abundant these little 
beetles may destroy all the buds on a vine, thus greatly retarding 
the leafing out or even occasionally killing the plant. The beetle 
is about one-fifth inch long, of robust shape, and possesses the 
thick thighs characteristic of flea-beetles, which enable it to jump 
a considerable distance when disturbed. It is common through- 
out the States east of the 100th meridian and nearly related 
species do similar damage on the Pacific Coast. (See Quayle, 
I.e.) The wild grape is undoubtedly the natural food-plant of 

* Haltica chalybea 111. Family Chrysomelidce. See Quaintance, I.e.; 
Hartzell, I.e.; and M. V. Slingerland, Bulletin 157, Cornell Univ. Agr. Exp. 
Sta. 



452 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

the species, though it is occasionally found on plum, apple, pear, 
quince, blue beech and elm. 

Life History. — After feeding a few days the female beetles 
commence to lay their eggs in cracks of the bark at the base of 
the buds, or in any crevice or in the cavity eaten out of the bud 
by the beetle, or sometimes on the foliage. The eggs are a long 
oval shape, one-fortieth inch long, and of a dark straw-yellow 
color. The eggs hatch just as the young leaves are expanding. 




Fig. 379. — The grapevine flea-beetle (Haltica chalyhea 111.): a, adult with 
hind leg at right further enlarged; b, larva, much enlarged; c, beetles 
and larvae on foliage — natural size; d, beetle feeding on bud; e, diseased 
beetles. (After Marlatt, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

and upon them the young larvae feed greedily. The larvae feed 
on the upper surface of the leaf, eating out irregular holes through 
the skin and into the soft tissue, and become full grown in three 
or four weeks. The young larvae are a very dark brown, but 
when grown they are one-third inch long and a dark yellowish- 
brown, marked by regular rows of blackish tubercles each of 
which bears a small hair. The head, anal and prothoracic plates 
and legs are black. The full-grown larva drops to the ground 
and an inch or two beneath the surface makes a small cell in which 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE GRAPE 453 

it transforms to a -white pupa, from which the adult beetle 
emerges in one or two weeks. In New York there is but a single 
generation, but more than one generation may occur in the 
South. Upon emerging the beetles feed on the grape and other 
plants, doing no particular damage, and enter hibernation in 
the fall. 

Control. — Where vineyards are regularly sprayed with arsen- 
icals there will be but little trouble with the flea-beetles, as the 
grubs are very easily destroyed on the foliage. In neglected 
vineyards the beetles often become very abundant and may be 




Fig. 380. — ^Eggs of the grapevine flea-beetle, natural size at a, and enlarged 
at b. (After Slingerlancl.) 

quite destructive in such localities. Where it is necessary to 
combat the beetles to prevent injury to the buds, close watch 
should be kept for them and the buds should be thoroughly 
sprayed at once, using 4 pounds of arsenate of lead per barrel. 
Usually this will need to be applied just as the buds are becoming 
well swollen, and must be applied promptly and thoroughly, 
as the beetles work quickly and a day's delay may mean the 
destruction of the buds. In a small vineyard or on a few vines 
the beetles may be collected by hand in the early morning when 
they are sluggish, or may be jarred to canvas-covered frames 
kept saturated with kerosene placed beneath the vines. 



454 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



The Rose-chafer * » 

About the time the grape is in bloom, immense swarms of 
the common Rose-chafers or Rose-bugs often appear, covering 
the plants, feeding on the blossoms, later attacking the young 
fruit and foliage, and sometimes eating the leaves quite bare except 
the larger veins. The chief damage, however, is done by destroy- 
ing the blossoms or newly set fruit, or by so injuring the young 
berries that they are misshapen and worthless The beetle is 




Fig. 381. — The rose chafer (Macrodadyhis subspinosus Fab.): a, beetle; 
b, larva; c, d, mouth-parts of same; e, pupa — all much enlarged; /, 
beetles at work on foliage — natural size. (After Marlatt, U. S. Dept. 
Agr.) 

about one-third inch long, of a light-brownish color, covered 

with numerous hghter hairs, and has very long spiny legs, which 

always seem to be in its way and make it most awkward and 

clumsy. It IS a very general feeder, being common on roses, 

from which the common name is received, and also on such orna- 

* Macrodadylus subspinosus Fab. Family Scarabopidoe. See Quaintance, 
I.e.; Hartzell, I.e.; J. B. Smith, Bulletin 82, N. J. Agr. Exp. Sta.; Fred John- 
son, Bulletin 97, Part III, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr.; and 
F. H Chittenden, Farmers' Bulletin 721, U S. Dept. Agr. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE GRAPE 455 

mentals as Spiraea and Deutzia, while it frequently injures the 
blossoms of apple, plums, cherries and peaches, and when very 
abundant will attack various vegetables, grasses, and grains. 
The species occurs commonly from Canada to Virginia and Tennes- 
see and westward to Colorado, and in Texas and Oklahoma, but 
seems to do but little damage west of the Mississippi, being most 
injurious in the Middle States. It is particularly destructive 
where there are areas of light sandy soil grown up in grasses and 
weeds, upon the roots of which the larvae feed. 

Life History. — After feeding three or four weeks the beetles 
suddenly disappear. During the middle of June, in New Jersey, 
the females lay from 12 to 20 eggs, depositing them in the soil 
singly. These hatch in two to three weeks and the larvae feed 
on the roots of various grasses and possibly weeds and other 
vegetation. They become nearly full grown by fall, when they 
go below the frost line and hibernate over winter. The larva 
looks very much like a small white grub, which it closely resembles 
in every way, and is about three-quarters inch long when full 
grown (Fig. 381, 6). In the spring the grubs come near the 
surface of the soil and enter the pupa stage, which lasts from ten 
to thirty days according to the temperature. There is but one 
generation a year, and the injury is done by the beetles during the 
three or four weeks they are abroad. 

Control. — When the beetles are very abundant the only satis- 
factory method of control is to pick them by hand or jar them 
from the vines onto frames from which they may be collected. 
In jarring, an umbrella-shaped frame covered with canvas or, 
preferably, oilcloth, which slopes to a can of kerosene at the 
bottom, is often used, being somewhat similar to that used for 
the plum curculio. This is held under the vines and they are 
sharply jarred or shaken, when the beetles will drop to the 
frame particularly in early morning. Handpicking into a can of 
kerosene and water is probably the most common method, how- 
ever. Where the beetles are not excessively abundant they have 
been controlled in some cases by thorough spraying with arsenate 
of lead, 5 to 10 pounds per barrel, preferably applied with Bor- 
deaux mixture, and recent experiments of the N. Y. Agricultural 
Experiment Station with 5 pounds of arsenate of lead and 12 
pounds of glucose per barrel gave excellent results. The num- 



456 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

bers of the pest may also be much reduced by keeping down the 
grass and weeds in the vineyard, and particularly on hght sandy 
soils adjoining lands should be broken up and cultivated in annual 
crops as far as possible, thus reducing the breeding grounds of the 
pest. By bagging the grapes as soon as the fruit is set the clusters 
may be protected from this as well as other pests and diseases 
wherever such treatment is practicable. 

All recent work seems to indicate that the treatment with 
arsenate of lead and molasses is the best means of control. The 
spray should be appHed before the beetles appear in large num- 
bers and it may be necessary to repeat it once or twice. 

Self-boiled Hme-sulphur has been said (Headlee) to act as a 
repellant, but there is need for more experimental work before 
this can be generally estabUshed. 

The Grape Leaf-hopper * 

Wherever the grape is grown in the United States and Canada, 
the fohage will be found more or less infested with the small 
Leaf -hoppers, often locally called " thrips," which feed and breed 
on the under surface of the leaves during the season. By late 
summer the vines may be covered with the hoppers, which will 
fly off in clouds when disturbed, and every year there is serious 
injury in various localities. The injury is done by the httle 
hoppers sucking out the juices of the leaves through their tube- 
Uke mouth-parts. A small white spot first appears around the 
feeding puncture, due to the loss of chlorophyll in the leaf, and 
when the punctures have become numerous the leaf has a varie- 
gated appearance. As the injury increases the leaf yellows and 
finally dries up and falls to the ground. Where it becomes 
general, this injury reduces both the quantity and quality of the 
fruit. The pest is an insidious one, as it is not usually noticed 
until it becomes very abundant in late summer, by which time 
most of the injury has been done and it is too late to prevent it. 
For this reason its control has been very generally neglected by 
grape growers with a consequent loss the cause of which is often 
unsuspected. 

* Typhlocyba comes Say. Family Jassidm. See Quaintance, I.e.; Hartzell, 
I.e., and Bulletin 359, N.'Y. Agr. Expt. Sta.; Quayle, I.e.; and M. V. Slinger- 
land. Bulletin 215, Cornell Univ. Agr. Exp. Sta., and Fred Johnson, Bulletin 
19, U. S. Dept. Agr. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE GRAPE 



457 



The adult hoppers are about one-eighth inch long and the 
wings are prettily marked with yellow and red as shown in Fig. 
382. "In summer the young and adult insects are Ught yellow- 
ish in color, but before going into hibernation, the eyes of the 
adults darken and the peculiar yellow spots on the wings change 
to an orange red, thus giving the hibernating adults a general 
reddish appearance. These darker markings on the adults vary 
so much that nine different varieties are now recognized, two of 
which are represented at b and c, in Fig. 382. Often several 




Fig. 382. — Grape leaf-hopper (Typhlocyha comes): a, adult female; b, adult 
male; c, another form of the species, showing variation in markings; 
d, newly-hatched nymph; e, last stage nymph; /, appearance of injured 
leaf; g, cast pupa skins — a, e, much enlarged; g, less enlarged;/, reduced. 
(From Marlatt, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

of the varieties may be found together on the same vines, but 
usually one color form largely predominates." The nymphs are 
a light yellowish-green color with lemon-yellow stripes on each 
side of the body. They pass through five molts before becoming 
adults, the wing-pads gradually getting larger in the later stages. 
No very similar insects are common on the grape, so that the 
pest is readily recognized. 

Life History. — The adult hoppers hibernate over winter under 
leaves, grass, or trash in or near the vineyard, in neighboring 
woods, along ditches or fences, etc. They emerge about May 1 
in New York and at first feed on whatever succulent foliage may 
be available. By the time the grape foliage appears they have 



458 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

mostly emerged and infest the vineyards. These hibernating 
hoppers feed and breed on the lower leaves, disappearing about 
the time the first young become adult. After a few weeks the 
females commence egg-laying, which continues for about two 
months. The eggs are laid just beneath the surface of the leaf 
in groups of from six to nine, or singly, and as they are but one- 
thirty-fifth inch long and almost transparent, they are scarcely 
visible save for the eyes of the embryonic nymphs. The eggs 
hatch in nine to fourteen days. The young nymphs feed Uke the 
adults, at first on the lower leaves, but soon spread to all parts 
of the plant. In New York they become grown in thirty to 
thirty-five days, and there is but one full generation a year, 
with a partial second generation, most of the individuals of 
which probably do not mature before frost. Feeding continues 
until cool weather, when the adults enter hibernation. In Col- 
orado, New Mexico and California and probably throughout the 
South, there are two full generations a year. In California, 
according to Quayle, the nymphs from eggs laid by the hibernat- 
ing hoppers appear by the middle of May and the following 
generation of njnnphs about the middle of July. 

Control. — Cleaning up all fallen leaves and trash in the vine- 
yard during the winter, or plowing it under in the early spring, 
will reduce the number of hibernating hoppers, and it has been 
observed that they are much less numerous in vineyards where 
clean culture is practiced. The burning over of adjacent mead- 
ows, wood lots and fence rows will also be advisable where 
practicable. 

In Cahfornia, where the vines are not trelhsed, a hopper-cage, 
which has been fully described by Quayle, I.e., is successfully 
used for catching the hoppers before they commence to oviposit 
in the spring. In the East this could not be used, but Professor 
SHngerland has shown that the hibernated hoppers may be caught 
on sticky shields before they oviposit. 

However, it has been found that such methods of capturing 
and destroying the adults are expensive and give at best- only 
partial rehef from the trouble. It has been found a much better 
practice to kill the nymphs. This is done very efficiently by 
spraying them with " Black-leaf 40" at the rate of 1 to 1500, 
applying the spray at the time the njonphs are present in the 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE GRAPE 



459 



greatest numbers on the under side of the grape leaves. If this 
is properly done, one application will give control. The time 
for spraying, in the Northern States, will generally be during 
the latter half of July. 

The Grape Leaf-folder * 

Very frequently grape leaves are found folded or rolled 
together, with the interior surface more or less skeletonized, 

from which a slender 
larva will wriggle out 
and fall or hang sus- 
pended on a silken 
thread. The Grape 
Leaf-folder occurs 
throughout the United 
States, and though 
usually not injurious, 
sometimes becomes 
abundant enough to 
do serious damage. 
The moth is black with 
white spots on the wings, 
and bands across the 
abdomen, as shown in 
Fig. 383. The larva is 
about an inch long, of 
a greenish-white color, 
with head and prothoracic shield light brown, and with brown 
spots on the sides of the first two thoracic segments. 

Life History. — "There are two broods each year in the more 
Northern States and three or possibly more in the South. The 
insect winters in the pupal stage in the folded and fallen leaves, 
the moths appearing in the spring shortly after the foliage puts 
out, and the eggs are placed in small patches here and there 
on the vine. Upon hatching, the young larvse attack the foliage, 
folding the leaves as stated. Mr. Johnson has observed that 
the larvae of the first brood may attack bunches of grape blossoms 
and young fruit in a way similar to the grape-berry moth In 

* Desmia funeralis Hiibner. Family Pyralidw. See Quaintance, and 
Quayle, 1. c, also J. F. Strauss, Bulletin 419, U. S. Dept. Agr. 




Fig. 383. — ^The grape leaf-folder {Desmia fun 
eraZis Hiibn.): «, male moth and enlarged 
antenna of same; 6, female moth; c, larva; 
d, head and thoracic segments of same en- 
larged; e, pupa; /, tip of pupa — enlarged; 
g, grape leaf folded by larva. (After Mar- 
latt, U. S. Dept Agr.) 



460 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



three or four weeks the larvae are full grown and transform to 
pupae within the folded leaves, moths emerging eight or ten days 
later. By midsummer and fall the insects become quite abundant, 
and in badly infested vineyards the folded leaves are everywhere 
in evidence and are quite conspicuous from the color of the lower 
surface. In the fall the larvae pupate in the folded leaves and 
pass the winter in these on the ground." — Quaintance. 

Control. — Where but a few larvae occur they may be crushed 




Nig 384.— The white-lined sphix Deilephila Inieata Fab.) : a, moth h, pale 
larva; c, dark form of larva; d pupa — all natural size. (After Chitten- 
den, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

by hand, and if this is done with the first brood it will greatly 
reduce the numbers later in the season. Vineyards sprayed 
with arsenicals will be protected, as the young larvae will be killed 
before they fold the leaves. By collecting and burning the fallen 
leaves or plowing them under deeply, many of the hibernating 
pupae may be destroyed. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE GRAPE 



461 



Hawk-moth Larvae * 

Several species of Hawk-moth or Sphinx-moth larvae are com- 
monly found on the vine. Most of them are widely distributed 
throughout the country and feed on wild grape and Virginia 
creeper. Usually they are not numerous enough to do serious 




Fig. 385. — The achemon sphinx (Pholus achemon Dru.): a, moth; b, egg; c, 
young larva; d, mature larva; e, pupa; /, parasitized larva — all natural 
size. (After Marlatt, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

damage, and as they strip a branch at a time, they are readily seen 

and may be destroyed before much injury is done. Occasionally, 

* Family Sphingidce. See O. Lugger, 4th Report State Ent. Minn. ; lad 
M. Eliot and Caroline M. Soule, "Caterpillars and their Moths." (N. Y., 1902). 



462 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

however, one or two larvae may entirely strip a young vine, and 
exceptionally the larvae appear in considerable numbers on old 
vines, stripping them bare of foliage. They are large, smooth- 
bodied larvae, 2 to 3 inches long, and may be distinguished from 
those of other famiUes of moths by the strong horn on the next 
to the last segment, which has given them the common name 
of horn-worms. In many species, this horn is present only in the 
first one or two stages of the larva, disappearing with the next 
molt and being replaced by a bright eye-spot, as shown in Fig. 385, 
c, d. The life history of the various species is much the same, 
except that some have only one, while others have two genera- 
tions a year in the North, though most all probably have two 
generations in the South. They hibernate as large dark-brown 
pupae, 3 or 4 inches below the surface of the ground, and the 
moths emerge in spring. The moths are particularly attracted 
to petunias, and may often be caught hovering over them at 
night. The eggs are laid on the foHage, usually singly, and the 
larvae hatch in a few days. They eat ravenously, and will con- 
sume an enormous number of leaves within a few days. Usually 
the coloration of the larvae changes more or less as they grow, so 
that when full grown they are different from the younger stages. 
When there are two generations, the second generation of larvae 
will appear in late July, but whether one or two generations occur, 
the larvae maturing in late summer transform to pupae which 
hibernate. 

Control. — Usually the work of the larvae is so conspicuous and 
they are so easily found that they may be controlled by hand- 
picking. Where the vineyards are sprayed regularly for other 
pests there will be but httle trouble with these larvae, as they will, 
be killed while young. 

The Grape-berry Moth * 

The larvae of the Grape-berry Moth are the most common 

cause of wormy grapes. The first generation of larvae web 

together the grape clusters before the blossoms open or soon after 

the grapes are set, and feed upon the clusters. Later the larvae 

bore into the green and ripening fruit, producing purphsh spots 

* Polychrosis viteana Clem. Ysimily Tor tricidce. See Quaintance, I.e.; 
Hartzell, I.e.,; M. V. Siingerland, Bulletin 223, Cornell Univ. Agr. Exp. Sta.; 
Gossard and Houser, Circular 63, Ohio Agr. Exp. Sta. Dwight Isely, Bulletin 
550, U. S. Dept. Agr. and W. H. Goodwin, Bulletin 293, Ohio Agr. Expt. Sta. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE GRAPE 463 

resembling the appearance of injury by the black rot. The 
berries decay from the work of the larvae and from the entrance 
of fungous diseases. The insect occurs throughout the United 
States, but has been particularly injurious in the Chautauqua, 
N. Y., Erie, Pa., and Northern Ohio grape belts. So far as known 
the grape is the only food-plant and the species is a native one. 
though its habits are very similar * ||^ 

to a nearly related European ^ 

species. ^ 

The adult is a little purplish- '^ _^ 

brown moth, with wings expand- '— SUSHl^r 

ing not quite one-half inch, and ^^,>-»4^^^^^mLtjm 



4 "^ ■■■•■?«^ 



Fig. 386. — The work of the grape-berry moth; infested cluster and single 
berry opened to show larva at woi"k — enlarged. (After Slingerland.) 

shaded with brownish markings as shown in Fig. 387. The 
ground color is lilaceous or leaden-blue and the spots are dark 
brown. 

Life History. — The moths appear in the spring as the shoots 
of the grape are pushing out, and continue to emerge for some 
weeks. The earlier ones lay their eggs on the blossom clusters, 
while the later ones deposit them on the young grapes. The 
minute flat, scale-like eggs are stuck to the surface of the stems 
or berries, and look like small glistening, whitish spots. The 
little larvae hatching from them feed on the blossoms and small 
berries, webbing the clusters together, and might do much more 
damage than the later generations were it not that they are much 
fewer in number, there being a great mortality of the insects over 
winter. The larvae become full grown in about three weeks. 
The mature larva is about three-eighths inch long, varying in 
color from dark greenish to dark purplish, with a light-brown 







Fig. 387. — Grape-Berry Moth: 1, Larva; 2, Pupa (ventral aspect) in cocoon; 
3, Pupa (dorsal aspect.); 4, 5, Adult. All greatly enlarged. (After 
Isely, I.e.) 

464 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE GRAPE 465 

head and black thoracic shield. The body is covered with 
numerous faintly outlined darker spots, from which arise whitish 
hairs. The larva cuts out a piece of a leaf on three sides, folds it 
over and fastens the free edge to the leaf with silk. The fold is 
then lined with a thin layer of silk, making a thin cocoon in which 
it transforms to a light greenish-brown pupa, from which the 
moth emerges twelve to fourteen days later. The moths of the 
second and later generations place their eggs on the berries and 
the larvae bore into them and feed on the pulp and seeds. In 
New York the moths of the second generation appear in early 



/■> 




Fig. 388. — Grape leaf showing cocoons in the making and finished by grape- 
berry moth caterpillars — natural size. (After Slingerland.) 

July and the second generation of larvae occurs during July and 
August. In New York those larvae of the second generation 
which mature before mid-August pupate and give rise to a third 
generation, while those maturing later transform to pupae, but 
hibernate. Often there is nearly a complete third brood in that 
latitude, and farther south there are undoubtedly at least three 
generations. The winter is passed in the pupal stage in the 
cocoons, which break off from the fallen leaves. 

Control. — Infested berries should be picked off both to destroy 
the larvae and to prevent the spreading of fungous diseases. 



466 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

Plowing under the fallen leaves either in fall or early spring 
should result in burying many of the pupse so as to prevent the 
escape of the moths, and is good practice for other grape pests. 
The principal reliance should be placed upon spraying with arse- 
nate of lead, 3 pounds per barrel, applied with Bordeaux mixture, 
to which a soap "sticker" should be added to make the mixture 
more adhesive to the berries. The first spraying should be made 
before the blossoms open, to catch the early larvae; the second 
should be made as the grapes finish blooming; and the third, 
early in July. The addition of the "sticker" is most important 
in the last spraying, when the berries are partly grown. The 
spray must be appHed with sufficient number of nozzles and 
pressure to penetrate the foliage and cover the clusters thoroughly. 

Isely (I.e.) shows conclusively that it is much more satis- 
factory to apply the spray by hand with short leads of hose 
and short spray rods, called trailers, than it is to depend upon 
any fixed arrangement of the nozzles which does away with the 
hand work. Difference in efficiency between the two methods 
favored the trailers by from 15 to 20 per cent and more than! 
repaid the extra cost. 

To preserve some clusters in extra fine condition or to pro- 
tect grapes on a small number of vines, paper bags are some- 
times tied over the clusters as soon as the berries have set. 

The Grape Curculio * 

The larvae of the Grape CurcuHo feed on the pulp and seeds 
of the berries, causing wormy grapes, much as do those of the 
berry-moth. The larvae may be readily distinguished, for those 
of the curcufio are white, footless grubs, while those of the berry- 
moth are greenish, with well-developed legs, and are quite agile, 
wriggling away quickly when disturbed. The adult curculio is 
a small, brown, robust, snout-beetle about one-tenth inch long, 
and nearly as broad. It is very difficult to see, looking like a bit 
of dirt or the excreta of some of the larger caterpillars common 
on the vine. It is common from Arkansas to Minnesota east- 
ward to New York and North CaroHna. It has been particularly 
injurious in West Virginia, and seems to be most harmful in 
that latitude. 

* Cra-ponius inoequalis Say. Family Curculionidce. See Quaintance, 
I.e., and Fred E. Brooks, Bulletin 100, W. Va. Agr. Exp. Sta. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE GRAPE 



467 



Life History. — The beetles hibernate over winter in or near 
the vineyards, especially along the edge of woodlands. They 
appear in the spring about the time the grapes blossom and feed 
upon the foliage for three or four weeks until the berries are 




Fig. 389. — The grape curculio {Cra'ponius incEqualis Say): a, beetle; h, head 
of same from side; d, larva from above; e, same from below; /, pupa — 
all much enlarged. (After Quaintance, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

about one-fourth grown. The beetles cut small characteristic 
holes in the loaves, and this habit of feeding on the foliage so 
long makes it possible to kill them with 
arsenicals before oviposition is commenced. 
In West Virginia the females begin egg- 
laying late in June, most of the eggs being 
laid in early July, but egg-laying may 
continue for eighty-one days, during which 
time a female will lay an average of 257 
eggs. The female excavates a small cavity 
in the berry in which the egg is placed and 
hatches in four to six days. Infested berries 
often show a purphsh spot around the egg- 
puncture. The larva bores in the pulp and 
in three or four days reaches the seed, 
which is then devoured. The larva becomes full grown in twelve 
to fifteen days, when it eats its way out of the berry and drops 
to the.ground in search of a suitable place to pupate. The mature 
larva is white, about one-third inch long, tapering from the middle 
of the body toward either end, without legs, and clothed with fine 
short hairs. The larvjB make small earthen cells under stones. 




Fig. 390. — The grape cur- 
culio in act of egg-lay 
ing — natural size ; e, 
showing position of egg 
in grape — enlarged. 
(After Brooks.) 



468 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

lumps of earth or just below the surface of the soil, and in them 
transform to pupae, from which the beetles emerge in eighteen 

to nineteen days. Thus the com- 
plete life cycle from egg to adult 
requires thirty-five days. The 
hibernating beetles are still abroad 
when the new beetles appear, and 
Brooks states that the average 
life of a beetle is one year and 
nineteen days. Although the 
beetles of the new brood lay 
some eggs, but few of them 
develop, and in West Virginia 
there is practically but one 
generation, although farther 
south a second generation may 
occur. The beetles feed until fall, when they enter hibernation. 
Control. — As the beetles feed so long on the foliage in early 




Fig. 391. — Grape curculio larvae — 
natural size. (After Brooks.) 






Fig. 392. — Grapes showing egg-punctures of grape curculios. (After Brooks.; 

summer they may be readily killed by spraying with arsenicals 
as advised for the berry-moth and grape-root-worm beetle. 



I 






3 



• 



Fig. 393. — Showing the resemblance of the grape curculios at 2 to excrement 
of sphinx caterpillars at 1, and mummied grapes at 3. (After Brooks.) 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE GRAPE 469 

Thorough cultivation in midsummer would doubtless destroy 
some of the pupae in the same manner as in the case of the root- 
worm. Infested fruit may be collected and destroyed as for 
the berry-moth with equally good results. Where spraying is 
regularly practiced there probably will be httle need of resort 
to other methods. 



CHAPTER XXIV 

SOME INSECTS INJURIOUS TO ORCHARD FRUITS* 

The San Jose Scale f 

Probably the most serious of all the insect pests of the orchard 
is the San Jose Scale, for it will kill young trees in two or three 
years, and old trees must be sprayed annually to keep it under 
control. So insidious is the attack of the pest to those unfamiliar 
with it that it has killed many thousands of trees before the 
owners suspected its presence. It may be most readily detected 
on the fruit, which becomes spotted with small red circles which 
form around the scales, but usually the fruit is not attacked 
until the tree is badly infested. On the young twigs and along 
the veins of the leaves a similar reddish discoloration appears 
around the scales. The trunk and branches covered with scales 
have a rough grayish appearance, as if they had been coated 
with dark ashes. By scraping the surface the soft, juicy, yel- 
lowish insects will be revealed beneath the covering scales. If 
a single female insect be examined it will be found that it is 
covered by a small, circular scale, varying from grayish to blackish 
in color, formed of concentric circles, the centre of which is quite 
convex and forms a "nipple," which is yellowish and shining 
when the surface is rubbed off. If this scale be raised with a 
pin, beneath it may be seen a small, soft, oval, orange-colored 
object, which is the true female insect. She is an almost shape- 
less mass of protoplasm, lacking head, legs and eyes, only the 
thread-like mouth parts and anal plate being distinct. The scale 
itself is merely a waxy covering secreted by the insect beneath. 
The scale of the male is smaller and somewhat elongated, the 
nipple being at the larger end. 

* See Quaintance and Seigler, Farmers' Bulletin 908, U. S. Dept. Agr. 

IfAspidiotus perniciosus Comstock. Family Coccidce. See C. L. Mar- 
latt, Bulletin 62, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr., and the numer- 
ous publications of many of the experiment stations, listed in his bibliography. 

470 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO ORCHARD FRUITS 



471 



Injury by this species was first noticed near San Jose, Cal., 
about 1880 where the scale was most destructive and was inves- 
tigated by Professor J. H. Comstock, who first described it. 
About 1887 it was brought east on Japanese plum trees secured 
by Eastern nurseries and was distributed by them on young 




Fig. 394. — Peach twigs infested with tiic .Nin Jose scale. On the twig at 
the right a scale has been turned back showing the female insect — 
enlarged. (After W. E. Britton.) 

trees, so that in 1893 it was discovered in orchards in Maryland 
and Virginia. Since then it has been spread on nui'sery trees to 
practically every State. Investigations made by C. L. Marlatt 
in 1901 showed that the insect is undoubtedly a native of east- 



472 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



central China, and was probably brought to this country on 
flowering-peach or some ornamental plant. 

Life History. — The winter is passed by partly grown insects 
under the scales, which begin to feed with the bursting of the 
buds in spring. In the latter part of April the insects have become 
full grown in the District of Columbia, and the males emerge 
and fertilize the females. The male is a small, yellowish, two- 
winged fly. The males emerge at night and are so small they are 
seldom seen unless reared. About a month later the females com- 
mence to give birth to live young and continue to do so for some 
six weeks. This species differs from most scales in having no egg 

stage, the eggs hatching in the body of 
the female. The young insects are very 
small, yellowish in color, and resemble 
small mites. They have six legs, a pair 
of antennae, and a long thread-Hke beak 
through which the food is sucked, as 
shown in Fig. 398. The young insect 
moves about freely for from twelve to 
thirty-six hours, then thrusts its beak 
into the bark or fruit, and if a female does 
not move again. White, waxy filaments 
soon exude from over the body, and 
in a couple of days the insect is entirely 

T^ or>r Ti •• J 1 ^u covered by them, and as they mat down 
Fig. 395. — Pear injured, by the , "^ ' , '^ . 

San Jose scale showing the a scale is formed which conceals it. This 
discolored spots. young scale is whitish with a prominent 

nipple in the center. After the first molt, the females lose eyes, 
legs, and antennae, for which they have no further use. Nour- 
ished by the sap of the plant the insect develops rapidly and 
is full grown in about a month. In the District of Columbia 
there are four or five generations a year, in the South there are 
probably more generations, while at the northern hmit of the 
species there are two or possibly three generations, as breeding 
continues until after killing frost. As with other small insects, it 
is the remarkable power of reproduction to which the destructive- 
ness of the pest is due. Thus it has been estimated that at Wash- 
ington, D. C, the progeny of a single female would number 
3,216,080,400 by fall, if ah were to survive. It is not surprising. 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO ORCHARD FRUITS 



473 



tnerefore, that a tree with but a few scales on it in spring will 
be covered by them and the fruit unfit for market in the fall, 




Fig. 396. — Peach leaf bearing ^an. Jos6 scales along veins. 

and that with these millions of little beaks pumping out the sap 

and poisoning the tissues a tree soon succumbs. 

The pest has been spread mostly by being transported on 

nursery trees. Trees infested from the nursery will usually have 

more scales on the lower trunk, 
from which they will spread 
to the limbs, while those infested 
from neighboring trees will have 
more scales on the young wood. 
Where the pest is abundant 
the young insects are undoubt- 
edly blown from tree to tree by 
the wind, or they may be carried 
on the feet of birds or insects, 
or brushed off and carried by 
persons or teams workmg in the 
orchard. The insect has been 
found on a long list of plants, 
but on many of them it is 

largely accidental. Injury is practically confined to plants of the 

Rosace ce, which family includes all our common deciduous fruits. 

Of the orchard trees peach, pear, Japanese plum, apple and 

quince are most injured in the order named, while cherry and 

European plum are less injured. 

Control. — As yet no spray has been found for use in summer 

which will more than check the increase of the pest without 

injury to the tree, and summer spraying is resorted to only when 




Fig. 397.— Adult female San Jos6 
scale, with scale removed to ex- 
pose the insect. (After Alwood.) 



474 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



winter treatment has been neglected or has proven inefficient. 
10 or 15 per cent kerosene emulsion, dilute miscible oils, dilute 
lime-sulfur mixture, or whale-oil soap, 1 pound to 4 or 5 gallons, 
may be used for summer spraying. 

On the Pacific Coast trees are very generally fumigated with 
hydrocyanic acid gas * for this and other scale insects, but the 




Fig. 398. — Young larva and developing San Jos6 scale (Aspidiotus pemiciosus 
Comst ) : a, ventral view of larva, showing sucking beak and setse sepa- 
rated, with enlarged tarsal claw at right; h, dorsal view of same, still 
more contracted and with the first waxy filaments appearing; c, dorsal 
and lateral views of same, somewhat contracted, illustrating further 
development of wax secretion ; d, later stage of the same dorsal and lateral 
views, showing matting of wax secretions and first form of young scale — 
all greatly enlarged. (After Howard and Marlatt, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

treatment has never come into favor in the East, principally, 
perhaps, because of the larger trees and the more scattered nature 
of the fruit industry. 

Practically the only methods now used in the East consist in 
spraying the dormant trees with washes which penetrate the 
scales and destroy the insects. This may be done more effec- 

*See C. W. Woodworth, Bulletins 122 and 152, Cal. Agr. Exp. Sta.; 
R. S. Woglum, Bulletins 79 and 90, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO ORCHARD FRUITS 475 

tively if the trees are pruned and headed in so as to reduce the 
wood to be covered. Rough bark should be scraped off so that 
the scales beneath may be reached. Badly infested trees should 
be sprayed in the early winter as soon as they have hardened 
up and again in the spring just as the buds commence to swell. The 
spring spraying will suffice for trees slightly infested. Every bit of 
bark on the tree must be thoroughly wet, so none will escape. 
Lime-sulfur mixture seems to be the favorite wash for winter 
spraying at present, as it not only kills the scale, but aids in the 
control of many fungous diseases. Miscible oils are also exten- 
sively used and have a certain advantage on hairy apple shoots 
and on badly infested trees, as they are more penetrating and 
spread better. Kerosene or crude oil emulsion containing 20 
to 25 per cent of oil was the first remedy to be used and is still 
extensively employed. Whale-oil soap, at the rate of 2 pounds 
to the gallon, applied hot, is effective, but is too expensive for 
large users. 

The Fruit-tree Bark-beetle * 

If the outer bark is punctured by numerous small ''worm- 
holes" so that it looks as if it had been struck with a charge 
of bird-shot, it indicates the presence of the fruit-tree bark-beetle 
or some nearly related species (see p. 477). Usually more or 
less gum exudes from the holes, particularly on stone fruits. 
Diseased or weak-growing trees are most subject to attack, but 
occasionally serious damage is done to perfectly healthy trees, 
especially when young. Injury is largely due to allowing dead 
and dying trees to stand in the orchard, thus encouraging the 
breeding of the pest in them and its spread to healthy trees. 
"Another form of injury is the destruction at the beginning of 
spring of small twigs, together with the leaves which they bear. 
The beetles are also reported to destroy leaves by boring into the 
base of the buds at their axils." The holes in the bark are caused 
by the exit of the small parent beetles and by their subsequent 
entrance to deposit eggs. The adult beetle is about one-tenth 
inch long, by a third as wide, and of a uniform black color, except 
the tips of the wing-covers and parts of the legs, which are red. 

* Ecoptogaster rugulosus Ratz. Family Scolytidce. See F. H. Chittenden 
Circular 29, Division of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr., and F. E. Brooks, 
Farmers' Bulletin 763, ibid., H. A. Gossard, Bulletin 264, Ohio Agr. Exp. 
Station. 



476 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Life History. — The beetles emerge from the trees in April and 
May in the Middle States. The female burrows through the 
bark, and partly in it and partly in the sap-wood she eats out a 
vertical gallery or brood chamber, along the sides of which at 
short intervals she gnaws out httle pockets in which she places 
her eggs. The larvse hatching from these eggs excavate Uttle 
side galleries, which branch out and widen as the larvae increase 




Fig. 399. — One of the most important native enemies of the San Jose scale, 
a little black ladybird-beetle (Microweisea misella): a, beetle; b, larva; 
c, pupa; d, beetles, larvae, and pupae, among scales — all greatly enlarged. 
(After Marlatt, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

in size (Fig. 401). The larvse become mature in about three 
weeks, when they form cells at the ends of their burrows and 
transform to pupae, from which the adult beetles emerge about a 
week later. There are probably three generations a year in the 
Middle States according to Dr. Chittenden. 

Were it not for the effective work of parasitic and predaceous 
insects which prey upon it, this insect would be a most serious 
pest. One of the most valuable of these is a little chalcis-fly * 
of which Dr. Chittenden bred 92 specimens from 72 of the develop- 

* Chiropachis colon Linn. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO ORCHARD FRUITS 



477 



ing beetles, and we have frequently had twigs in which practically 
all of the developing beetles were parasitized. 




Fig. 400. — ^The fruit-tree bark-beetle (Scolytus 7-ugulosus): a, h, beetle; c, 
pupa; d, larva — enlarged. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



ControL- 



The most important point in the control of this and 
similar pests is to cut out and de- 
stroy all dead and diseased wood. 
Burn all prunings and trimmings. 
Affected trees should be Hberally 
fertilized m the spring so that 
they may make a quick growth 
and better withstand the in- 
jury. Repellant washes have 
been advised for deterring the 
beetles from ovipositing. A 
thick soap wash containing a 
pint of crude carbohc acid to 10 
gallons may be used. Professor 
Gossard advises whitewashing the 
trees in early spring, again in 
mid-summer and lastly about 
October 1st, adding one-quarter 
pound of table salt or some 
Portland cement to make it more 
adhesive. He also reports kilhng 
the beetles in their burrows with 
an emulsion of carbolineum. 
"Emulsify by dissohang 3 pounds 
of naphtha soap in 3 gallons 
of water by boihng. While hot, 
add 1 gallon of carbolineum 
(avenarius) and agitate as for 




Fig. 401.— Work of the fruit-tree 
bark-beetle showing the main gal- 
leries, the side or larval galleries, 
and the pupal cells — slightly en- 
larged. (After Ratzeburg.) 



478 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



kerosene emulsion with a force pump. Add four gallons of 
water for use and apply with a spray pump. Keep face and 
hands protected from this spray." The carboHneum is rather 
expensive, however, and does not seem to be much more 
effective than the whitewash. 

Control measures, aside from pruning, are rarely necessary. 

The Buffalo Tree-hopper * 

The work of the Buffalo Tree-hopper consists of a series of 
cuts or incisions in the Umbs of fruit or shade trees, made by the 
female in the process of egg-laying, which result in very character- 





FiG. 402. — The buffalo tree-hopper (Ceresa huhalus Fab.) : a, a, adult, enlarged 
and natural size; twig of apple showing recent egg-punctures at h; c, 
bark reversed with eggs in position; d, single row of eggs — enlarged; 
e, wounds of two or three years standing on older limbs. (After Mar- 
latt, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

istic wounds. This injury is somewhat like that done by the 

periodical cicada or by tree crickets, but the scars are larger 

and are placed irregularly. When badly attacked the hmbs of 

small trees sometimes become so scarred that they are badly 

stunted or may be killed. The cause of this mischief is a curious 

* Ceresa huhalus Fab. Family Memhracidce. See C. L. Marlatt, Circular 
23, Div. Ent., U. S. Dept. Agr., and H. E. Hodgkiss, Tech. Bulletin 17, N. Y. 
Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 92. 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO ORCHARD FRUITS 479 

little grass-green insect, about three-eighths inch long, whose 

pronotum is broadly expanded into two sharp horns, which are 

fancied to be like those of the buffalo, as indicated by the common 

name of the insect. They are very common, frequenting all 

sorts of rank-growing vegetation, appearing in midsummer, and 

being most numerous in August and September. 

Life History. — Egg-laying is commenced in August and is 

continued until killing frosts. The eggs are laid in two curved slits, 

with from six to twelve in each, as shown in Fig. 402, c, d. In 

making these slits the female cuts the bark between them entirely 

loose, so that the intervening wood soon dies, possibly to prevent 

the growth of the wood crushing the 

eggs. A large scar is thus formed 

which enlarges with each season's 

growth, and finally becomes an oval 

shape by the center dropping out. 

After a few years badly infested 

limbs become very rough, are easily 

^'k'^I^^T^I^P^ ""^ broken by the wmd and furnish van- 
bunalo tree-hopper — . 

enlarged. (After tage pomts for the attack of borers. 
Hodgkiss.) rpj^g gggg hatch the next May or 

June. Like the adults, the young nymphs feed on all sorts of 
succulent vegetation, seeming to prefer the juicy annual plants 
even to the tender terminals of trees, the orchards suffering 
most being those grown up in weeds. 

Control — By keeping young orchards well cultivated and free 
from weeds, the nymphs will have no food in early summer and 
will starve or leave for better feeding grounds. Patches of weeds 
near young orchards should also be destroyed. When trees are 
badly wounded by the egg punctures they should be well pruned 
and the prunings burned to destroy the eggs. 

The Periodical Cicada * 

" There is probably no insect that has attracted more general 
interest and attention in this country than the Periodical Cicada, 
or the so-called Seventeen-year Locust. The earliest settlers 

* Cicada septendecim Linn. Family Cicadidoe. See C. L. Marlatt, Bul- 
letin 71, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr.; A. D. Hopkins, Bulletin 
68, W. Va. Agr. Exp. Sta. 



480 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



doubtless associated its vast noisy swarms with the devastating 
invasions of the Migratory Locust of the East. Hence the popular 
name locust, which has been used so long that it is doubtful if it 
will ever be discarded for the proper name — Periodical Cicada." 
They are quite different from the true locusts, or grasshoppers, 
however, for the latter have biting mouth-parts while the cicadas 
suck the juices of the plant through a tube-like beak. Some 
twenty-seven distinct broods of the cicada have been distinguished, 
seventeen of which appear at seventeen-year intervals and ten of 
them appear at thirteen-year intervals, the former being mostly 




Fig. 404. — The periodical cicada {Cicada sepiendecim Linn.): a, adult; b, 
young nymph — enlarged; c, cast skin of full grown nymph; d, adult 
females showing ovipositor at b, and beak at a — natural size. (After 
Marlatt and Riley, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

in the North and the latter mostly in the South. Some one or 
more of these broods appears in every State east of the Rockies 
except Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont. Every year there 
is a brood emerging in some part of the country, and the different 
broods have been carefully mapped so that their emergence may 
be anticipated. 

Life History. — The adults appear in immense swarms in late 
May or early June. "About four or five days after their first 
appearance," says Dr. Hopkins, "the males begin to sing," 
filling the air with their shrill calls, which are produced by two 
drum-like membranes on the under surface of the first abdominal 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO ORCHARD FRUITg 



481 



segment. "About eight or ten days later the sexes begin to 
mate, and in about four or five days more the females commence 




IT 



Fig. 405. — Typical cicada injury. Photo by W. E. Rumsey 



to deposit eggs. Each female is said to deposit from three to 
five hundred eggs in numerous ragged punctures made by her 




Fig. 406. — Emergence of cicada. 

powerful ovipositor in the twigs of shrubs and trees, and some- 
times in the stems of herbaceous plants. These hatch in about 



482 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND OJICHARD 



six or eight weeks from the time they are deposited and the young 
cicada larvae emerge and fall to the ground. They then burrow 
beneath the surface and enter upon their long menial existence 
in the ground, feeding on the liquids of roots and possibly sub- 
sisting on such nutriment as may be obtained from the soil itself. 
They change their position from time to time, and may rarely 
enter the earth for a distance of eight to ten feet or more," though 
usually within two feet of the surface. ''By the twelfth or thir- 




FiG. 407. — The full-grown nymphs of the periodical cicada in different stages 
of molting and the newly emerged adults with body and wings still soft 
and white. 

teenth year the larva attains its full growth and in time changes 
to the intermediate or pupa stage.* During the spring of the 
fifteenth and sixteenth years great numbers of the pupae may be 

* Dr. Hopkins and other writers commonly use the terms larva and pupa 
in describing the immature stages of the cicada, but there seems no reason 
for discarding the term nymph used for other Hemiptera, and which is cer- 
tainly useful in distinguishing the immature stages of insects with incom- 
plete metamorphosis from those with complete metamorphosis which have 
a true pupa. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO ORCHARD FRUITS 



483 



found near the surface, and a few individuals may emerge during 
May and June of the sixteenth year. Early in April of the seven- 
teenth year the pupae commence to make preparations to emerge 
from the ground by excavating burrows or exit galleries to the 
surface. These exits are completed by the 
last of April. Ordinarily they extend only 
to the surface, and are kept open from a 
depth of a few inches to a foot or more. 
In some soils these exit holes are extended 
four or five inches above the surface by 
means of clay carried up from the subsoil, 
and are called cicada chimneys. The pupae 
come from the ground in the evening and 
at night, usually between sundown and ten 
o'clock, and proceed to the nearest upright 
object, which may be a tree, the side of a 
building, fence, or weed stem — anything, in 
fact, upon which they can chmb and expose 
their bodies to the action of the open air. 
In about an hour after emerging the skin 
on the back splits open and the adult insect 
works its way out (Fig. 406). The wings, 
which are short and soft at first, rapidly 
develop; the body, wings and legs harden, 
and by the following day the adult is ready 
to take flight and enter upon its short aerial 
life, limited to about thirty days. During 
this short period they feed but httle, if at 
all, the males devoting their time during 

the day to flying about and making a noise, ^^^,- ^^?T~^°u"^, ^^^^ 
, . , . , , shrouded with cheese 

while the voiceless females busy themselves cloth to prevent cicada 
depositing eggs. " If the young nymphs do injury. Photo by W.E. 
any injury to the roots of trees or plants, 

it is very rarely perceptible. The adult females, however, are 
capable of causing serious injury to young fruit trees in orchards 
and nurseries by the numerous punctures in the twigs, limbs 
and main stems made by them in the act of ovipositing The egg 
puncture makes an ugly wound, beyond which the twig dies, and 
the foliage of large trees on which hundreds of cicadas have 



4^ 


i^ ' 


m 


'. 'ij 


mM 


,\ vHhH 


1 


' 1 


1 


wS^f \ ^^^^M 


H 


m '^i^H 


1 


Hi '/MU 


1 





484 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



I^^Ji^HMr- ->—»■-.. • ^- 


- '^^g/KP 


^^■P^' - 


j^Tj^Sfl^- 




^Ec 




^^^p^- 


l^^^/'M^ 


^^^B~ 




jl^^^p^. 


"^^nr^BI 


Ek 


"'"^I^^BHp 


mpi^ 




Fig. 409. — Result of protecting trees with cheese- 
cloth. Above, protected trees at end of the 
season; below, unprotected tree at the same 
time. Photos by W. E. Rumsey. 



oviposited turns, 
brownasif the tree had 
been scorched by fire. 
On young trees this 
results in destroying 
the growth of a year 
or two and misshaping 
the tree, and the scars 
which remain later 
furnish points of attack 
for borers and the 
woolly apple-aphis. 
Just before the 
cicadas leave the 
ground they are at- 
tacked by hogs and 
also by disease. Upon 
leaving the ground 
they are at once 
assailed by a host of 
predaceous insects and 
various animals. One 
of the most valuable 
insect enemies is a 
large wasp (Sphecius 
speciosus Dru.), which 
may often be seen 
bearing the adults to 
its burrow, where they 
furnish food for her 
young. The English 
sparrow is remarkably 
fond of the adults and 
is the most valuable 
factor in exterminat- 
ing them in cities and 
towns. It has been 
noticed that cicadas 
are much more likely 
to emerge from newly 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO ORCHARD FRUITS 485 

cleared land, and with the removal of the forests and cultivation 
of the land they are undoubtedly becoming more scarce. 

Control. — There is no means of destroying the adults, but 
many of the pupae may be destroyed by allowing hogs to run 
on land known to be infested during April and May of the year 
they emerge, where it is feasible to do so. Injury to young 
orchards may be avoided by not planting during the year or 
two previous to the emergence of a brood in the particular locality. 
Budding and grafting should also be avoided dm-ing the previous 
spring. Orchards should not be pruned the year before a cicada- 
year, so that there may be plenty of young wood in which they 
may oviposit and which may then be removed without injury 
to the tree. Evidently a knowledge of the time of appearance 
of each brood in different sections is of great importance and 
may be secured from the maps pubhshed (see Marlatt, I.e.). 
After all the eggs are laid the affected twigs should be pruned 
off in July and burned before the eggs have hatched. 

Newly planted trees may be protected to a large extent by 
wrapping them in cheesecloth during the presence of the adult 
cicadas. The method has been tried in West Virginia and in 
Virginia and the benefits have been sufficient to warrant the 
necessary expenditure. 

The Fall Webworm * 

The common Fall Webworm is so called because in the North, 
where there is but a single generation, its webs are abundant in 
August and September, in contrast to those of the tent cater- 
pillar, with which they are often confused, which are found in 
the spring. The wings of the adult moths expand from one to 
1 1 inches, and are either a pure milk-white, or more or less spotted 
with black, the number of spots being exceedingly variable. The 
full grown caterpillars are about an inch long, covered with long 
black and white hairs which project from numerous black tubercles. 
They are also quite variable in color, some being uniformly yellow- 
ish with black and yellow tubercles, while others have a dark 
stripe down the back and are almost black. 

Life History. — In the North the moths emerge late in June and 
in July, and lay the eggs late in July. The eggs are deposited 
on the leaves in pale yellowish-green patches of 400 to 500, often 

* Hyphantria cunea Dru. Family Arctiidoe. 



486 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



covered with whitish down from the body of the female, and 
hatch in about ten days. The young larva are pale yellowish 
with brown markings and appear to be almost all head and hair. 
They at once spin a web over the foliage on which they are feed- 
ing, those from one egg mass feeding together and enlarging the 



F - 


^ ■ 


' 








■' 






9 ') 






1 














f 






CI 




# 




\ 





Fig. 410. — The fall webworm (Hyphantria cunea Dni.): a, light form ,of 
full-grown larva; h, dark form of same; c, pupa; d, spotted form of 
moth — all slightly enlarged. (After Howard, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

web as necessary. In the North the webs are usually noticed in 
early August and are started at the tips of the limbs. Within them 
the surfaces of the leaves are eaten off until they are left dry and 
brown. When all the foliage on a limb has been consumed, the 
caterpillars leave the web, enclosing the dead leaves, and form a 
new web on a fresh branch, and thus the tree soon becomes covered 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO ORCHARD FRUITS 



487 



with unsightly webs, which are often mingled so that the whole 
tree is webbed over. The web is easily distinguished from that 




Fig. 411. — Web of the fall webworm on apple, showing enclosed foliage and 
larvae feeding within. 



488 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



of the tent caterpillar, as it is found later, and the tent caterpillar 
makes a relatively small web in the fork of a limb and never 
encloses foliage in it. The caterpillars become full grown in a 
month to six weeks, and then find secluded places under the bark 
or in a hollow of the tree, in the rubbish at its base, or in a fence 
corner, or sometimes just under the surface soil, and there spin 
flimsy silken cocoons with which they mingle their own hairs. 
They then transform to small brown pupae about one-half inch 
long, in which stage the winter is passed. In the Middle States 

and farther south 
there are two genera- 
tions, the moths ap- 
pearing in April and 
May and laying eggs 
in late May and early 
June, the caterpillars 
from which becomefull 
grown by mid-July. 
The second generation 
of caterpillars appears 
in late August and 
September at about 
the same season as 
farther north, and 
their pupse hibernate. 
Were it not for their 
parasitic enemies these 




Fig. 412.^ — Meteorus hyphanirice, a common para- 
site of the fall web worm; a, adult female; b, 
empty cocoon showing cap and suspending thread 
— enlarged. (After Riley, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



caterpillars would be much more of a pest, and it is when the para- 
sites become scarce that injury results. One of their most com- 
mon and effective enemies is a little Braconid fly,* whose small 
brown cocoon (Fig. 412) is often found suspended from a twig or 
leaf. Many caterpillars are also killed by various predaceous bugs, 
and frequently they are killed off by fungous disease 

The fall webworm is a common pest of all orchard trees, and 
frequently extends its injuries to shade trees. The larvae are not 
uncommon on cabbage, beets and a long list of garden crops. 
According to Dr. H. G. Dyar this species is confined to the South 

* Meteorus hyphantrioe Riley. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO ORCHARD FRUITS 



489 



Atlantic States, but it has been confused with another species 
(Hyphantria textor Harris) by practically everyone, and it is still 
a question as to whether the two species are really distinct and 
if so how they are to be distinguished. If the latter form be a 
distinct species, it occurs throughout the United States and has 
the same habits. 

Control. — The insect is readily controlled by spraying with any 
of the arsenicals when the work of the young larvae is first noticed. 
Where orchards are sprayed for the codling moth there will be 
little trouble with the first generation, and fruit-growers will do 
well to make it a practice to spray in August where they are 
troubled with this and other leaf-eating caterpillars. 

Mechanical destruction of the 
nests is good practice when spray- 
ing is not done. 



The Brown-tail Moth.* 
The Brown-tail Moth has become 
injurious only in Massachusetts, New 
Hampshire and Maine although it has 
several times been brought into other 
states in the winter nests on seedling 
trees imported from France and 
Belgium. With the present effici- 
ent quarantine service it is rather 
unlikely that it will become estab- 
lished elsewhere. On the contrary, 
it seems that its range may gradu- 
ally be reduced although actual exter- 
mination can not be looked for in 
the immediate future. It has long 
been a serious pest in parts of central 
and western Europe, whence it was 
introduced into Massachusetts about 
attention until 1897. 




Fig. 413. — Winter web of the 
brown-tail moth — one-half 
natural size. 



1890, but did not attract 
The female moth is pure white except the 
tip of the abdomen, which is golden brown and forms a large 

* Euproctis chrysorrhcea Linn. Family Liparidce. See L. O. Howard, 
Farmers' Bulletin 264, U. S. Dept. Agr.; E. D. Sanderson, Bulletm 136, N. H. 
Agr Exp. Sta.; A. F. Burgess, Farmers' Bulletin 845, U. S. Dept. Agr, 



490 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



tuft or brush, which gives the insect its name. The wings of the 
female expand 1| inches, the males being slightly smaller, and bear 
one or two streaks of brown on the under sides. The full-grown 
caterpillar is 1| inches long, dark brown, marked with a white 
dash on the side of each segment. The body is dark brown 
or blackish, well marked with patches of orange and covered with 
numerous tubercles bearing long barbed hairs. On the centre 
of the fifth and sixth abdominal segments are small retractile red 
tubercles. The tubercles along the back and Sides are thickly 

covered with short brown 
hairs which give them a vel- 
vety appearance. These 
microscopic hairs are 
barbed and are the nettling 
hairs which, when they 
alight on the skin, produce 
a dermatitis much like that 
caused by poison ivy. As 
the cast skins are carried 
here and there by the wind 
and the young caterpillars 
drop from the trees, people 
are frequently badly 
poisoned where the pest 
becomes abundant, so that 
it is a serious public nuisance 
as well as as defoliator of fruit and shade trees. The caterpillars 
prefer fruit trees, pear, wild cherry, and apple being most relished, 
but become abundant on almost all the common shade trees, 
except the evergreens, and particularly on oak. 

Life History. — The moths emerge in midsummer. They are 
strong fliers and are readily carried by the wind for many miles. 
They are attracted to lights in great numbers, so that they are 
more abundant in cities and villages. Late in July the eggs are 
laid on the terminal leaves, 300 or 400 being laid in an elongate 
mass and covered with brown hairs from the tip of the female's 
abdomen. They hatch in about three weeks and the young larvae 
feed on the surface of the leaves, leaving only the brown skeletons, 
so that badly infested trees turn brown in early fall. The cater- 




FiG. 414. — Winter web of the brown-tail 
moth bearing young larvte which have 
emerged before the fohagehas appeared 
and are feeding on the dead leaves of 
the nest — two-thirds natural size. 



INSECTS INJUEIOUS TO ORCHARD FRUITS 



491 



pillars hatching from an egg mass feed together on adjoining 

leaves, which they soon commence to draw together with silken 

threads, and by the 

first frosts they have 

spun them into a 

tough web. This is 

attached to the twig 

by the old leaf stems, 

which are bound to 

it by silk. The web 

looks like a couple of 

dead leaves from a 

distance, but the 

leaves are merely the 

outer covering, and if 

the silk web be torn 




Fig. 415. — Full-grown larvae of the brown-tail 
moth — natural size. 



open, there will be found numerous small pellets of silk each enclos- 
ing from three to twelve of the little partly grown caterpillars. The 

caterpillars emerge just as 
the buds burst in the spring 
and feed on the expanding 
foliage. Where abundant 
they soon strip a tree, for 
each of the nests harbors 
400 or 500 little caterpil- 
lars. In five or six weeks 
they have become full 
grown and spin thin 
cocoons of white silk among 
the leaves, in which they 
transform to dark-brown 
pupis. About three weeks 
later the moths emerge. 

Several native parasites 
and predaceous bugs prey 

TT -lie r,,, , i. -1 ., /E^ ,. upon the caterpillars, but 

Fig. 416. — The brown-tail moth (E^iprochs / '■ . ' 

chrysorrh(Fa Linn.): male above, female do not seem materially to 

below— natural size. reduce their numbers. 

In Europe there are several parasites which prey on all stages 
of the insect and which the State of Massachusetts with the 




492 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



cooperation of the U. S. Bureau ot Entomology is introducing 
in hope that they may ultimately be as effective in this country 

against both the brown-tail and 
gipsy moths. The most effective 
natural check of the brown-tail cat- 
erpillar is a fungous disease which 
often completely destroys large col- 
onies, both in the spring and fall. 

Control. — On fruit and shade trees 
the winter nests may be pruned 
off and burned in winter, thus pre- 
venting any injury the next spring, 
but this is impracticable on forest 
trees, which as a rule are not seri- 
ously injured. The repeated prun- 
ing often injures the trees, as it is 
difficult to cut all the nests with- 
out removing more of the new 
growth than is desirable. It is bet- 
ter, therefore, to spray the trees 
with arsenate of lead, 4 pounds to 
the barrel, as soon as the eggs hatch 
in late summer, and thus destroy 
the young larvae before they have 
spun their winter webs. 




Fig. 417. — Brown-tail moths as- 
sembled on electric light pole, 
Maiden, Mass., July 12, 1905. 
(After Kirkland.) 



The Gipsy Moth * 

History. — The Gipsy Moth has 
been known as a serious insect pest 
in Europe from the time of the earliest naturalists, the first 
authentic record being in 1662. It extends throughout the con- 
tinent of Europe, over much of Asia and into Northern Africa, 
but is chiefly injurious in Central and Eastern Europe. It fre- 

* Porihetria dispar Linn. Family Lipnridoe. See Forbush and Fernald, 
"The Gipsy Moth," Mass. State Board of Agr. (1892); L. O. Howard, 
Farmers' Bulletin 275, U. S. Dept. Agr. ; Annual Reports of the Mass. Super- 
intendent for the Suppression of the Gypsy and Brown-tail Moths; E. D. 
Sanderson, Bulletin 1,36, N. H. Agr. Exp. Sta.; Rogers and Burgess, IBuUetin 
87, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr., containing bibliography, and 
A. F. Burgess, Bulletin 204, U. S, Dept. Agr. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO ORCHARD FRUITS 493 

quently does serious injury there by defoliating large areas of 
forest and more ferquently fruit and shade trees, but its ravages 
cease in two or three seasons, not to occur again for several years, 
like those of many of our native insects, such as the forest tent 
caterpillar and tussock moth. In 1868 the insect was brought 
to this country by Professor Leopold Trouvelot at Medford, Mass., 
in his experiments in silk producing. Escaping from him into the 
neighboring woodland, the insect increased gradually for several 
years before being noticed, but in 1890 had become such a serious 




Fig. 418. — Gipsy moth caterpillars— natural size. (After W. E. Britton.) 

pest throughout this and neighboring towns that the State of 
Massachusetts commenced the arduous task of its extermination. 
At this time the insect occurred in some twenty towns. For the 
next ten years it was successfully combated by the Massachusetts 
authorities, and in 1898 it had spread to but three towns not 
infested in 1890 and in many places it had apparently been exter- 
minated. So slight was the injury that legislative appropriations 
were discontinued for four years, during which time the moth 
spread over four times the area previously occupied and became 
so abundant that State action was again necessary. From 1905 
to 1910 it spread throughout eastern Massachusetts and southern 
New Hampshire and Maine, and was found in two or, three local- 



494 INSECT PFSTS OF FARM. GARDEN AND ORCHARD 




ities in Connecticut.* Appropriations for its control have been 
increased until now the State of Massachusetts and the Federal 
Government are each appropriating $300,000 per annum and 
the total cost of combating it in New England must be con- 
siderably over a milHon dollars per year. As it is gradually 
spreading, there seems every reason to fear that it may ultimately 
invade other States. 

Life History and Description. — The eggs are laid in July and 

August, in a mass of 
400 to 500, covered 
with yellowish hairs 
from the body of the 
female. The mass is 
an irregular ovalshape 
1| by f inches, and 
is deposited on the 
bark of trees, but 
where abundant, on 
• fences, stones, build- 
/ ings, etc. The eggs 
hatch about May 1, 
and each mass yields 
a swarm of young cat- 
erpillars, the bulk of 
which become full 

grown by midsummer. 
Fig. 419. — The gipsy moth (Porthetria dispar rpi - + 'll r 

Linn.) : male above; female below— natural size. -•■ ^® mature caterpniar 
(After Forbush and Fernald.) has a dusky or sooty- 

colored body. Along the back is a double row of five pairs 
of blue spots, followed by a row of six pairs of red spots, which 
readily distinguish this from any other common caterpillar. 
The full-grown caterpillar is about 3 inches long. Sometime 
in July or early August it spins a few threads of silk as a sup- 
port, sheds its skin and changes into a pupa, sometimes enclosed 
in a thin cocoon, but often hanging pendant from its attach- 

* Connecticut State authorities, in co-operation with the Federal author- 
ities, have exterminated the insect within that State. 




Fig. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO ORCHARD FRUITS 495 

ment. Characteristic light reddish hairs are scattered over the 
pupa. The pupal stage lasts from ten days to two weeks, 
when the adult emerges. The moths emerge from the middle 
of July to late August. The male is brownish-yellow, varying 
to greenish-brown in color, the wings being marked with darker 
stripes, has a slender body and the wings expand about 1 1 inches. 
It flies by day with a pecuhar zig-zag flight. The female moth 
is nearly white with numerous small black markings, is heavy- 
bodied and sluggish. The wings expand about 2 inches, but 
fortunately the female is unable to use them for flight. Were it 
not for this the spread of the pest would have been much more 
rapid. After mating the moths Hve but a short time and do 
no damage. 

The pest is spread mostly in the caterpillar stage The young 
caterpillars drop down on fine silken threads and may alight on 
vehicles which transport them to non-infested areas. When just 
hatched, the caterpiflars have very long hairs, slightly expanded 
at the base, and these, with the silk which they spin out, serve 
to buoy them up in the air so that they may be carried for a 
considerable distance by a strong wind Where they occur in 
myriads on high trees, the little caterpillars may be carried by 
the wind for considerable distances, and this is one of the chief 
means of spread.* The egg masses may also be transported on 
merchandise or boxing, and the pest has undoubtedly become 
established in several localities in this way. A few cases of 
importation on nursery stock have been known 

The caterpillars will attack any of the fruit, shade or wood- 
land trees, and where they become excessively abundant will 
destroy all green vegetation of almost any kind. It is essentially 
a pest of forest trees, but where it occurs it defohates all of the 
common fruit trees. Coniferous trees are killed after being once 
stripped of their fohage, and deciduous trees usually die after four 
or five defohations. Recent experiments show that the young 
caterpillars when they hatch from the eggs are unable to feed on 
conifers, so that growths of soft wood may be protected by keep- 
ing all hard-wood trees cut out 

* See C. W Collins, Bulletin 273, U. S Dept. Agr. 



496 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

Control. — In the orchard the gypsy moth is readily controlled 
by painting the egg masses with creosote in winter and by spraying 




Fig. 420. — Egg masses of the gyp^y uiolli uix the trunk of an apple tree. 

the trees with arsenate of lead, 5 pounds per barrel, just as the 
eggs are hatching in the spring. Where this is practiced there 
is very Httle trouble in controlling it in orchards. Upon shade 
and forest trees the problem is much more difficult and the reader 




Fig. 421.— The Calosoma beetle (Calosomn sycophanta). Upper left eggs' 
lower left adult beetle feeding on gipsy moth caterpillar; upper' right' 
gipsy motli pupa? destroyed by calosoma larvs; center, calosoma larva' 
ventral view; right center, calosoma larva, dorsal view; lower right' 
calosoma pupa in cavity in ground. (From Howard and Fiske.) ' 

497 



498 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

should consult the authors cited (footnote, p. 492) as to the best 
means and apparatus. Although the pest is still confined to 
New England, it is such a serious one and there is so much danger 
of its spread elsewhere, that fruit-growers should be on their 
guard against it and should submit suspected specimens to the 
nearest entomologist. Should it be found in any other States, 
no expense should be spared to exterminate it absolutely before 
it may become established. 

The Federal authorities, in addition to maintaining a rigid 
quarantine within the areas infested by the gipsy-moth and the 
brown-tail moth, have made very intensive biological studies 
of the insects, both in this country and in its native home in 
Europe and have impoi'ted from Europe many of its natural 
enemies, including diseases, hymenopterous parasites and pre- 
daceous insects which attack it. Most important among the 
latter and possibly the most important of the insect enemies, is 
the ground beetle Calosoma sycophanta L., which is shown in the 
accompanying illustration. 

It is hoped that the importation of a large number of different 
kinds of natural enemies will, in time, reduce these insects to the 
status of native pests which are occasionally somewhat injurious 
but which are, over a period of years, held in check by the natural 
means of control, and the progress of the work during the past 
few years makes it seem likely that this will be accomplished. 

Canker Worms * 

Since the early colonial days Canker Worms have been among 
the best-known insect pests of the apple orchard, but they are 
general feeders and attack several orchard and shade trees. 
According to Dr. W. E. Britton they " seem to have a 
preference for the fohage of apple, elm, chestnut, pear, oak, 
hickory, box-elder, and maple, in about the order named," and 
cherry and plum are recorded by others. The canker worms are 
among the most common of the "loopers" or ''measuring worms," 
and are the larvae of two nearly related species of moths, very 
similar in both appearance and habits. The larvae defoliate the 

* Family Geometridoe. See D. W. Coquillet, Circular 9, Div. Ent., U. S. 
Dept. Agr.; W. E. Britton, Biennial Report Conn.Agr. Exp. Sta., 1907- 
08, p. 777; A. L. Quaintance, Bulletin 68, Part II, Bureau of Entomol- 
ogy, U. S. Dept. Agr. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO ORCHARD FRUITS 499 

trees in early spring, particularly in old sod 
orchards which have not been 
cultivated or sprayed. 




The Spring Canker Worm * 

This species is so called from 
the fact that its eggs are laid 

in the early spring instead of in the fall, as are 
those of the other species. It occurs from Maine 
to Iowa and southward to Texas, and in Colorado and 
California, but has not been reported on the Atlantic 
Coast south of New Jersey according to Coc^uillet. It 
seems to be particularly injurious in the Mississippi 
Valley. The full-grown caterpillar is from three- 
quarters to one inch long, slender, and cyhndrical, 
and has no prolegs on the middle of the abdomen. 
The color varies from ash-gray to green or yellow, 
but the predominating color is dai'k greenish-oUve 
or blackish, marked with narrow pale lines down the 
back and a whitish stripe along each side. The wings 
of the male moths expand an inch, and are semi-trans- 
parent, brownish-gray, with three rather indistinct dark 
lines across the fore-wings. The females are wingless 
and at the first glance look much more like spiders than 
moths. They are about one-third inch long, of a dull 
brown or grayish color with a dark brown stripe down 
the middle of the back. 

Life History. — The moths emerge from the pupse in 

the ground in March and April and the females climb 

up the trunks of the trees, where they place their eggs 

in irregular masses of about fifty, under loose scales of 

bark, in cracks in the bark, in crotches of limbs, etc. 

The individual eggs are yellowish-green, turning quite 

Fig. 422. — Canker worms dropping from foliage in characteristic attitudes. 

(After Bailey.) 

dark just before the larvas hatch, of an oval shape, and about 
one-thirty-fifth inch long. The eggs hatch in about a month and 
the young caterpillars commence to feed on the leaves just as they 
* Paleacrita vernata Peck. Family Geometridoe. 









500, INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

are expanding, at first eating small holes through them, but later 





Fig. 423. — The spring canker worm 
(Paleacrita vernata): a, male moth; h, 
female moth — both natural size; c, 
joints of female antenna; d, joint of 
female abdomen; e, ovipositor — en- 
larged. (After Riley.) 

devouring all but the midribs. The young 
of dropping from the trees and hangin 



Fig. 424. — The spring can- 
ker worm {Paleacrita-ver- 
nata): a, larva — natural 
size; b, eggs — natural size 
and enlarged ; c, side view 
of segment of larva ; d , dor- 
sal view of same — both 
enlarged. (From Riley. 

caterpillars have a habit 
g suspended on strands 




Fig. 425. — The female moths of the spring canker worm — twice natural size, 
and pupae — three times natural size. (After Quaintance, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

of silk. In four or five weeks they have become full grown and 
enter the soil to a depth of 2 to 5 inches, where they hollow out 
earthen cells, which 
they line with a little 
silk and in them 
change to pupse, in 
which stage the sum- 
mer and winter is 
passed. The pupse is 




Fig. 426. — Eggs of spring 'canker worm — twice 
natural size. (After W. E. Britton.) 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO ORCHARD FRUITS 



501 



nearly one-third inch long, light brown in color, somewhat pitted, 
and the male pupa bears a simple spine at the tip of the abdomen. 

The Fall Canker Worm * 

The Fall Canker Worm seems to be the more common form in 
New England according to Dr. Britton and is a more northern 
species according to Coquillet, occurring through the North- 
Central States and in Colorado and northern California. As its 
name indicates, it differs in life history in that the moths emerge 
in November and December, "often occurring in great numbers 
on foggy days during a thaw after the ground has been frozen." 
They are most numerous about the middle of November in Con- 
necticut, although Dr. Britton states that when the ground freezes 
in early fall and does not thaw, 
many of the adults do not 
emerge until March, when the 
hfe history would be identical 
with the last species. The eggs 
are laid in clusters of about 
100, arranged in rows, each egg 
fastened on end, and are laid 
on the bark of the smaller bran- 
ches or on the trunk. The 
egg i s brownish-gray, rather 
darker than that of the spring 




427. — The fall canker worm {Also- 
phila pometriaa) : a, b, agg; c, d, side 
and dorsal views of larval segment — 
enlarged; e, egg mass; /, larva; gf, fe- 
male pupa — natural size; h, anal tub- 
ercle — enlarged. (From Riley.) 



species, and is shaped like a flower-pot, the outer end being marked 
with a dark spot in the centre and a dark ring near the margin. 
The eggs hatch in late April and early May in Connecticut. The 
larvae are very similar in general appearance to those of the spring 
canker worm, but may be easily distinguished by having two 
pairs of prolegs on the middle of the abdomen. The pupa is sim- 
ilar to that of the other species, but is somewhat stouter and the 
spine at the tip of the abdomen of the male pupa is always forked. 
The cocoon is much tougher, contains more silk, and is therefore 
less easily crushed. The male moth is sHghtly larger than that of 
the other species, with longer antennae, and the wings are firmer, 
less transparent and darker in color. The fore-wings are crossed 
by two whitish bands, the outer one being indented on the front 
* Alsophila pometaria Harris. Family Geometridoe. 



502 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 





margin so that it forms a distinct spot, and this outer band is seen 
on the hind-wings, though it is less distinct. The females are a 
uniform, ash-gray without markings, and with longer antennae 
than those of the other species, the segments of which are about 
as broad as long, and are bare of hairs. 

Control. — In old sod orchards where the pest is always worst, 
thorough cultivation will largely destroy the pupse during the sum- 
fii mer. The caterpillars may be quickly de- 
' -] stroyed by spraying with arsenate of lead, 
i 3 pounds per barrel. The first spray- 
ing should be applied as soon as the 
foliage is fairly expanded and before the 
trees bloom, and the second should be 
given as soon as the blossoms drop. 
The first is the more important and one 
thorough spraying will usually suffice, as 
the young caterpillars are much more 
easily killed. Where for any reason spray- 
mg is not feasible, the females may be 
prevented from ascending the trees by 
encircling the trunks with bands of tangle- 
foot or someother sticky substance which 
they cannot cross. These bands should 
be applied in early October and late 
March, according to the species preva- 
lent. The tanglefoot may be applied 
directly to the bark of the tree, making 
a band two inches wide by one-quarter 
inch thick. Printer's ink, bodlime, and 
caterpillar-lime are often used, but should 
not be placed on the bark. A narrow 
band of cotton batting should be run around the tree and cov- 
ered with a strip of building paper 4 to 6 inches wide, on the 
center of which the sticky band should be placed, thus preventing 
any injury to the bark by the material. Where spraying and cul- 
tivation are customary canker worms rarely become troublesome, 
but they are likely to be the worst insect pest of street-trees and 
wood-lots in the Middle-west. 




Fig. 428.— Wingless fe- 
male moth and egg 
mass, and winged male 
moth of the fall canker 
worm — twice natural 
size. ( A f t e r W. E. 
Britton.) 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO ORCHARD FRUITS 



503 



The Evergreen Bagworm * 
The Bagworm is more frequently considered as a shade-tree 
pest than as an orchard enemy. At the same time its possi- 
bihties for injury in the orchard are of great importance. We 
have seen apple orchards with many trees killed in a period 
of two years and in one instance in Kansas a ninety-acre orchard 




Fig. 429. 



-Canker worm innili- ; l^ ■j,^<s, masses caught on sticky band. 
(After W. E. Britton.) 



was abandoned because the insect had injured most of the trees 
beyond recovery. The bagworm feeds on evergreens such as 
juniper or red-cedar and arborvitse as well as on fruit and shade 
trees. It attacks locust, maple, poplar, apple, plum and many 
other trees, showing a preference for the evergreens and the 
locust. 

* Thyridopteryx ephemerocformis Haw. Family Psychidoe. See Howard 
and Chittenden, Farmers' Bulletin 701, U. S. Dept. of Agr., and L. Haseman, 
Bulletin 104, Missouri Agr. Expt. Station. 



504 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

It is a native insect and is found generally over the country 
east of the Rockies and south of the northern tier of States, but 
injury is most serious in the Central States. 

Injury is usually sporadic, occurring for a year or two and 
then disappearing. This is due to the subjection of the insect 
by its many parasites which keep it from being at all times a 
first-class pest. 

The male moth is a small, black form with short, rounded, 
clear wings and is rarely seen. The female is wingless and does 




Fig. 430.^ — Bagworin, Thyrido'pteryx ephemeroeformis: a, larva; b and c, pupa, 
side and back views; d, adult; e, case containing the eggs; /, larva in 
case; g, eggs. Natural size. (After Forbes.) 

not leave the bag or cocoon. In this cocoon, in the fall, she lays 
her eggs and in this state the winter is passed. In early spring 
the eggs hatch and the young larvae feed on foliage, forming 
almost immediately their bags or cocoons which they enlarge as 
they grow. The cocoons are first the shape of tiny cones which 
project from the upper surface of the leaves upon which the insects 
are feeding and conceal all but the head and feet of the worm. 
When the insect is nearly grown it begins to taper the lower end of 
the cocoon and by the time growth is completed the cocoon tapers 
about equally toward each end, being spindle-shaped. It is at- 
tached firmly by a band of silk to a small twig and the larva pup- 
ates. Males emerge in a few weeks but the females remain in the 
bags and produce their eggs. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO ORCHARD FRUITS 



505 



Control is accomplished by spraying with arsenate of lead, 
apphed at the time of the first appearance of the foliage as for 
the curculio and canker-worms. 



The Plum Curculio * 

Throughout the States east of the Rocky Mountains, the Plum 
Curculio is one of the worst pests of the common stone and pome 
fruits. Its larva is the common 
white "worm" found in peaches, 
plums, and cherries, while apples 
and pears are scarred and gnarled 
by the feeding and egg punctures 
made by the adults. It is a 
native insect which breeds on wild 
plums, wild crab-apples and haw- 
thorns. The adult is a thick-set 
snout-beetle about one-quarter 
inch long, brownish in color, 
marked with gray and black, 
and with four black ridged tuber- 
cles on the wing-covers. The 
larva is a footless, cylindrical, 
whitish grub, about one-third inch 
long, with a small brown head, 
and usually lies in a curved position as in Fig. 432. 

Life History . . — The beetles hibernate under grass, leaves, and 
other trash on the ground in or near the orchard, or in neighboring 
woodlands, and commence to emerge just before the fruit trees 
bloom in the spring. They feed somewhat on the buds, unfolding 
leaves and blossoms, but mostly on the young fruit as soon as it 
is set; indeed, in New England the beetles do not emerge until 
a week or two after the apple blossoms fall. The females com- 
mence to lay eggs in the young fruits as soon as formed. The 
egg puncture of the plum curcuUo is shaped like a crescent and 

* Conoirachelus nenuphar Herbst. Family Curculionidce. See C. S. 
Crandall, Bulletin 98, 111. Agr. Exp. Sta.; S. A. Forbes, Bulletin 108, ibid.; 
J. M. Stedman, Bulletin 64, Mo. Agr. Exp. Sta.; E. P. Taylor, Bulletin 21, 
Mo. State Fruit Exp. Sta.; A. L. Quaintance, Yearbook U. S. Dept. Agr., 
1905, p. 325; Circular 120, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr., and 
Bulletin 103, ibid. 




Fig. 431. — Bagworm cocoons 
or " Bags." 



506 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



has given it the very apt name of " little Turk." The female 
first eats out a small hole with her stout snout, and deposits 
a small, oval, white egg in the cavity. She then cuts a small 

segment of the skin 
and flesh around it so 
that the growth of the 
fruit will not crush the 
egg, the whole opera- 
tion taking from fifteen 
to thirty minutes. The 
hfe of the female aver- 
ages about two months, 
during which time she 
will lay 100 to 300 eggs 
Fig. 432.— The plum curculio {Conoirachelus ^nd probably make as 
nenuphar Herbst.): a, larva; b, beetle; c, . ,. 

pupa— all much enlarged. (After Chitten- many more feeding 
den, U. S. Dept. Agr.) punctures. The punc- 

tures made by the adults of both sexes in feeding are simple 
round holes like those in which the eggs are laid, but without 





Fig. 433. — 1, young plums showing crescent-shaped egg punctures of the 
plum curculio; 2, adult curculio on young peach — four times natural 
size. (After Quaintance, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

the crescent marks. Frequently gum exudes from punctures on 
the stone fruits. 

The egg hatches in from three to five days and the young 
larva bores into the fruit until grown, usually feeding around the 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO ORCHARD FRUITS 



507 



pit in stone fruits. The larva becomes grown in from twelve to 
eighteen days (in peaches) according to Quaintance, but in cen- 





^<.:;^ppy 




Fig. 434. — Plum curculio on young 
apple and egg punctures — en- 
larged. 



Fig. 435. — The plum cur- 
culio — enlarged five 
times. (After Stedman.) 



tral Illinois in fallen apples it requires from twenty to twenty-six 
days according to Crandall. When full grown the larva leaves 




Fig. 436. — Larvse of the plum curculio — enlarged five times. (After Stedman.) 

the fruit and enters the soil, where it forms a small cell an inch 
or two below the surface, in which it transforms to a white pupa. 
Three or four weeks elapse before the emergence of the adult 



508 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 




beetles; the first emerge about ten weeks after the apples 
blossom, the majority appear two or three weeks later, and the 
rest continue to emerge until October. If the weather is dry 

the beetles may remain in the 
cells much longer than normally, 
while a shower will bring out 
numbers of them. Upon emerg- 
ing the beetles feed upon the 
ripening fruit. In many sections 
the injury to apples by the feed- 
ing punctures then made is worse 
than the spring injury, as the 
surface of the fruit is injured 
and entrance places for rot are 
furnished. The beetles average 
about one puncture a day for six 
weeks after emergence in central 
Illinois and commence to enter 
hibernation with the first frosts. 
In New Hampshire we have 
seen no evidence of injury by 
the beetles in late summer or 
fall. 

Injury. — Injured plums and 
peaches usually drop to the 
ground, or if they remain on 
the tree, ripen prematurely, 
and rot more quickly. Cherries 

, ^ , , ,. stick to the tree, but the fruit is 

Fig. 437. — Work of the plum curculio ., ^^ ^ i i /■ .1 

on apple: d, feeding punctures from often small and gnarled from the 
surface and in section; e, egg punc- egg-scars, or eaten o u t by the 
ture from surface; e., same m sec- 

tion— all enlarged. (After C. S. larva. In apples the larvae only 
Crandall.) develop in those which drop to 

the ground, the rapid growth of the apples probably crushing the 
eggs. The egg-scars and feeding-punctures cause apples to be- 
come gnarly, this being particularly true of summer varieties, which 
are often rendered worthless, and even winter sorts are blemished 
by the scars which also furnish points of attack for rots. 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO ORCHARD FRUITS 509 

Control. — Frequent cultivation while the pupae are in the soil 
in midsummer will throw them to the surface and crush many of 
them, and has been found to aid materially in the control of the 
pest. As the larv often develop in the fallen fruit, it is well 
to gather it every few days and destroy it before the larvae have 
left it to pupate, which will also aid in the control of other fruit 
pests. The beetles have a habit of "sulling," "playing possum," 
or feigning death, when suddenly disturbed, and will drop to the 
ground if a limb is jarred. This has given rise to the common 
practice of jarring peach, plum, and cherry trees and collecting 
the beetles on frames beneath them. This may be done with 
simple frames covered with canvas, a frame being placed on either 
side the tree and a flap extending from one over the edge of the 
other, from which the beetles are picked up, or a regular curculio- 
catcher such as has been commonly used in New York may be 
more convenient. This is used as shown in Fig. 438, the frame 
being covered with oil-cloth and slanting to a can containing kero- 
sene for the destruction of the beetles which sHde into it. The 
jarring should be done in the morning, as the beetles do not drop 
as readily in midday. 

The jarring method of curculio control has, at the best., merely 
a historical interest now as it is impractical in commercial orchards 
and of doubtful value elsewhere. 

Modern methods for curculio control are based on the feeding 
habits of the adults. Since these feed on the young foliage 
in the spring before and during the egg-laying period they may 
there be poisoned. Arsenate of lead is the material most largely 
used, the appHcations on apple as recommended for the codling 
moth giving fair control. If curcuHo injury is more serious, there 
should be a spray applied to the apples before the blossoms 
open. This is known as the "cluster-bud" spray and is often 
necessary for canker-worm control as well as advisable for certain 
diseases. On peach, plum and cherry, the time of application 
is varied to some extent, but if one bears in mind that it is well 
to keep the foliage covered with poison from the time it appears 
in the spring for a period of about six weeks and arranges the 



510 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



spray schedule so as to accomplish this as nearly as possible, he 
will secure satisfactory control of the curcuUo. 

Arsenate of lead must be applied with care to the peach as 
the foUage is tender. It is frequently applied with self- 
boiled lime-sulphur and if this is not used Ume should be 
substituted 

The Oriental Peach Moth or Fruit Moth *• 

Another recent importation from the Orient which deserves 
mention on account of its almost unhmited possibilities for evil 




Fig. 438. — Jarring trees over a curculiu catcher. (After .Slmgcrland.) 

is the so-called Oriental Fruit-moth or Peach-moth. It is closely 

related to the codhng-moth but is more difficult to control- as 

it has four to six broods each year and it feeds on foliage, in fruit 

and in the twigs, its feeding habits being such that effective 

control by means of spraying would be impossible. 

This insect has been noticed in the District of Columbia and 

has since been found in Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, 

* Laspeyresia moelsta Busk. " Family Tortricidce. See Philip Carman, 
Bulletins 209 and 223, Md. Agr. Expt. Station, and Quaintance and Wood, 
Jour. Agr. Research, Vol. VII, No. 8, and Wood and Selkregg, ibid, Vol. 
XIII, No. 1. 




Fig. 439. — Work of Oriental fruit moth: a, characteristic wilted tip; h, twig 
cut open sliowing larva in burrow. (After Wood and Selkregg, 1. c.) 

511 



512 INSECT PESTS OF FARM GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



and neighboring states. 




It has not developed in abundance 
except in and near the District of 
Columbia as yet and it is possible 
that it will find some conditions here 
which will tend to discourage its wide 
spread. 

The larvse are similar to the cod- 




Fig. 440.— Adult Oriental fruit .., ^ . , , . , , 

moth. After Wood and Sel- FiG. 441.— Oriental fruit moth larva, 
kregg, 1 c. After Wood and Selkregg, I.e. 

ling moth but may be distinguished by food habits which have 
been mentioned The moth is the size of the codling moth but a 
duller and more uniform gray in color. 

Control measures have not yet been determined. 




SPRAYSCHEDULE 
for APPLETS 

( NORTHERN .STATES ) 



. San Jose 
scale , 



r.The DORMANT SPRAY 

Use lime -sulphur concentratellyaltoyorS gals, 
of -watertinlate fall, duPLng- warm days of winter, 
or in early spring- i!'i?A'/'6' the leaf buds are open . 
This isforSan Jose'^cale sind other scales. 

Where aphids are troublesome add /ipt.cif40% 
nicotine sulphate to every SOg^ls. of spray and 
delay application till buds are just showine- 
green but not till tips of leaves separate. Or 
make a special treatment for aphids with nico- 




Youngajj;j«eatai tine sulphate(!^ pt.toSOg-als.of Water in whicKS 
bykafroli^rian/s. joF 4r Ibsof 6oap have been dissolved). 
Where leaf-rollera are particularly troublesome add 3 lbs of powdered 
arsenate of lead(or61bs.of the pasteform)toeveiy50srals.oflimesul- 
phur and spray as directed for aphids. (When nicotine is used w^ith lime- 
sulphur ob/ro^ use soap) Or.in place of the above spraya, use kerosene 
emulsion or a miscible oil for scales, aphids aoidleaif-rolleres'S'S. 

II. FIRST SUMMER SPRAY 



Aphids on 
Opening-liuiJ. 




\ Use hme-sulphur concentrate 
r I (IVig-aJs.to50g-als.of water) and 
1 Ib.ofpov/dered arsenate of lead 
^■^^ y (or 2 lbs. ofthe paste form) in every and injury u) fruit 
*tjr . .. bOvals.ofsprayjust before tlieilossomsopen. 

1 ime tor spray 11. >^^^^ ^^^^^ .^ for budmoth.leaf-roller.tent caterpillars, 
canker -worms.plum curcul io, and scab. 

Where apple red bugs are troublesome add nicotine 
CodJInVlnoth ^ suJphate(Vlpt.toevery50?als.ofspray).Thiss:ives 
, IX^ also further protection against aphids. 

'^SV 'yvi^ Where bud-moth ana leaf-roller are especially 
^v^^yKu^ troublesome use 3 lbs. of the powdered arsenate 
(or 6 lbs. of the paste form) to every 50 g-als.of spray 
and apply wAen the blojsom duds are first in evidence. 

III. SECOND SUMMER SPRAY 

Use same spray as in II just after the petals have 
fallen but before the calyx lobes have closed. 

This spray is for same pests as in 11 and is the 
most important spray {or scab and COD LING 
WyTWSpec2al care should be taken to drive tlte 
poison into the open calyx cups because the 
majority of the codling- moth larv« cf the fir^t. 
broodwill enterthe apples throughthe calyx end 

If apple red bug's are still troublesoiTie add 
Injury~~^"^P^ J nicotine sulphate as in II. 

by second ^•'—^ i; 

broodofcodlinsmoth. IV. THIRD SUMMER SPRAY 

-- 4,--.^ Use same spray as inll three or four w^eeks after the petab 
iS'^^w'^'ay have fallen for same pests as before and for leaf-spot 

. -« '■■ — V. FOURTH SUMMER SPRAY 

Use same spray as in 11, eig-ht or nine -weeks after 
the petals have fallen, for second brood of the cod- 
liny moth and for scab; or use BordeauLX mix- 
ture (3" 3 "50) in place of lime-sulphur.espec- 
ially If blotch and bitter- rot are present 






for Ai" '"/'<" 



eerAflHKRS'BLrj.Z.ETll\r'i-S£,U^DA. 




Effectofplumcup 
culioorvapplcsat^ 
pickirig- time. 



Fig, 442. — Apple spraying chart. 



Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr. 

513 



CHAPTER XXV 

INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 

The Woolly Apple-aphis * 

The Woolly Aphis is one of the most destructive pests of 
young apple orchards, and as it works mostly upon the roots it 
often escapes detection until the tree is badly injured or killed. 




Fig. 443. — The woolly apple-aphis {Eriosoma lanigera Hausm.): a, agamic 
female; 6, young nymph; c, last stage of nymph of winged aphis; d, 
winged agamic female with enlarged antenna above — all greatly enlarged 
and waxy excretion removed. (After Marlatt, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

The aphids will be found clustered in bluish-white, cottony 
masses, looking like patches of mold, on the smaller twigs, par- 
ticularly water-sprouts, and around wounds or scars on the trunk 

* Eriosoma lanigera Hausmann. Family Aphididoe. See C. L. Mar- 
la'tt, Circular 20, Div. Ent., U. S. Dept. Agr.; R. I. Smith, Bulletin 23, Ga. 
State Board of Ent.; Gillette and Taylor, Bulletin 134, Colo. Agr. Exp. Sta., 
p. 4- C. P. Gillette, Journal of Economic Entomology, Vol. I, p. 306; A. C. 
Baker, Report 101, U. S. Dept. Agr., and B. R. Leach, Bulletin 730, U. S. 
Dept. Agr. 

614 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 515 



or limbs. Their presence in these places is always an indication 
that others are feeding upon the roots, where they cause gall-like 
swelHngs, so that the roots soon become a mass of knots and die 
in a year or two if the injury continues. When badly attacked 
a tree becomes sickly, the foliage turns yellow, and if not killed 
outright by the aphids, it falls an easy prey to borers and other 
pests. Injury seems to be worse on hght soils and not so severe 
on heavy soils. Whether the insect is a native or a European 
species is a matter of dispute. In Europe it is called the "Amer- 
ican bhght," and was described from Germany in 1801. It has 
now become distributed all over the world on nursery stock, 
which forms the principal means of its dissemination. 




Fig. 444. — The woolly apple-aphis: at left, apterous viviparous female; 10, 
fall migrant; 11, over-winter young. (After Gillette and Taylor.) 

Life History. — On infested trees aphids will be found in all 
stages of growth on the roots in early spring. On the trunk, 
under bits of bark or under the dead bodies of those killed the 
previous fall, will be found numerous small aphids which have 
hibernated there, though in the North these may be killed out 
during severe winters. As the buds begin to open, the aphids 
on the trunk locate on tender new bark and commence to feed, 
and many migrate from the roots t5 the top at about the same 
time They are not usuallj^ detected until they have multipHed 
sufficiently to make small white patches, on the bark or leaves, 
which look hke mold. During the spring and summer all are wing- 
less females, not over one-tenth inch long, of a reddish-brown 



516 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



color and covered with a white, waxy secretion, given off in threads 
from the abdomen so as to form a cottony mass over the colony. 
These females produce from 2 to 20 young per day, which 
become full grown in from eight to twenty days according to 
Alwood,* 100 or more probably being produced in two weeks. 




FiQ. 445. — The woolly apple-aphis: at left, colonies on twig and in scar 
on an apple limb; at right, crown and root of young apple tree, showing 
characteristic swellings produced by the root aphids. (After Alwood.) 

Reproduction continues on both tops and roots except as checked 
by the cold of winter, the aphids becoming most abundant in 
midsummer. Early in the fall a generation of winged aphids 
appears, which migrates to other trees. They are about one- 
twelfth inch long and have a wing expanse of one-quarter inch. 
They appear to be black, but the abdomen is really a dark yel- 
lowish or rusty brown color when closely examined, and bears 
more or less of the waxy secretion on the tip. Each of these 
winged females gives birth to from four to six wingless males and 

* Bulletin 45, Va. Crop Pest Commission, p. 12, Special Bulletin, Va. 
Agr. Exp. Sta. 




Fig. 446. — ^Woolly apple-aphids on stem of seedling tree and swellings made 
on roots slightly enlarged. (After Rumsey and Brooks.) 

517 



518 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



females, which are deposited on the trunk of the tree. The 
sexes are wingless, much smaller than the summer forms, and 
are without beaks, so that they take no food. The female is 
a brown-ochre color, and the male dark green or greenish- 
brown and smaller, as shown in Fig. 448. They become full 
grown in about eight days, when they mate and the female then 





Fig. 447. — Sexual female of the woolly apple-aphis, showing egg before and 
after extrusion — greatly enlarged. (After Alwood.) 

lays a single large black egg, which is deposited in the crevices 
of the bark on the lower part of the trunk. These eggs hatch 
in the spring and give rise to new colonies. 

As they multiply large galls are produced on the roots, the 
tissue probably being poisoned by the mouth-parts of the insects. 
As a result the roots soon die and the aphids then migrate to 
the growing roots, so that their absence on the worst knotted 
roots does not indicate that they have forsaken the tree but that 
they are on younger roots. 

Control. — Nurserymen commonly apply a liberal amount of 
tobacco dust in trenches along the rows, which kills the aphids 
and acts as a repellant, as well as being worth haK its cost as a 
fertilizer. This is probably the best practice in the nursery unless 
the aphids become abundant when more vigorous treatment 
should be used, but tobacco has not always proven a satisfactory 
treatment for orchard trees though used with apparent success 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 519 

in some instances. The aphids may be destroyed on the foHage 
by spraying with 7 per cent kerosene emulsion, miscible oils 
diluted 30 to 40 times, whale-oil soap, 1 pound to 6 gallons, or 
tobacco extracts, '' black leaf -40" being used 1 part in 700 of water. 
Whatever insecticide is used must be applied in a strong spray 
so as to wet thoroughly and penetrate the waxy covering of the 
aphids. A winter spray of lime-sulphur wash destroys the hiber- 
nating aphids on the trunk, 
and doubtless kerosene 
emulsion or miscible oils 
applied in early spring, 
as for the San Jose scale, 
would be as effective, 
though the Ume-sulphur 
would probably also de- 
stroy some of the eggs. 
The trunks of trees known 
to be infested may be Fig. 448.— Sexual female and male of the 
banded with tanglefoot wooHy apple-aphis — greatly enlarged. 

. ., . , , (After Alwood.) 

or similar sticky mater- 
ials as described for canker worms (p. 502) to prevent the 
aphids from migrating from the roots to the top. Where 
the aphids are abundant on the roots, the earth should be 
removed for 6 or 8 inches deep over the affected roots and 
lime-sulphur solution, diluted about one to eight, applied in 
quantities sufficient to wet the soil thoroughly about the roots. 
Other solutions tried for soil treatment have given less success 
than this. 

Some success has been reported by Leach from the use of 
carbon disulphide in water solution, one ounce to four gallons, 
applied about the roots with a power sprayer. Sodium cyanide 
solution, applied in the same way also gave fairly good results. 
With any of these methods there is the disadvantage that they 
require large quantities of water to be transported to the orchard 
and all are somewhat expensive. 

Liberal fertilization, to enable the tree to do well in spite 
of the presence of the aphids is probably more practical for most 
growing conditions. 



520 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



The Round-headed Apple-tree Borer * 

The young apple orchard must be given frequent inspection 
to detect the work of the round-headed borers, for if they become 
estabhshed in the young trees it is difficult to kill them and they 
soon girdle the trunks. They are most injurious to apple and 
quince, less so to pear, and also infest wild thornapple trees and 
mountain ash. The species occurs generally east of the Rocky 
Mountains, but is not commonly injurious in the Gulf States. 
The presence of the borers may be detected by the retarded growth 




Fig. 449. — The round-headed apple-tree borer (Saperda Candida Feb.) larvse, 
adults, and exit holes — natural size. (After Rumsey and Brooks.) 

of the trees, with a yellowing of the fohage, and the sawdust like 

castings which the larvse throw out from the entrances of their 

burrows, accompanied by a discoloration of the bark over the 

new burrows, and in early spring there is often a sUght exudation 

of sap. Injury is most severe in neglected orchards, where grass 

and weeds are allowed to grow about the bases of the trees, as 

the beetle, which flies at night, seeks the concealment of the 

rank vegetation during the day. The parent beetle is a handsome 

* Saperda Candida Fab. Family Cerambycidoe. See E. P. Felt, Bulletin 
74, N. Y. State Museum, p. 23, which gives full bibliography to 1902, and 
F. E. Brooks, Farmers' Bulletin 675, U. S. Dept. Agr. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 



521 



insect about three-quarters inch long. The antennae and legs are 
gray, the head and under surface of the body silvery white and 
the upper surface is light brown with two longitudinal white stripes. 
Life History. — The beetles emerge from late May to the middle 
of July and the females soon commence to deposit their eggs. The 
female eats out a little slit in the bark, in which the egg is inserted 
and often pushed under the bark and then covered with a gummy 
substance. It is a pale rust-brown color, about one-third inch 
long, of a broad oval shape, and usually concealed on young trees. 
The egg hatches in two or three weeks. The young larvsB tunnel 
just under the bark on the sap-wood, usually working down 




Fig. 450. — Work of the round-headed apple-tree borer: a, puncture in which 
egg is laid; h, same in section; e, hole from which beetle has emerged; 
/, same in section; g, pupa in its cell. (After Riley. — ) 

toward the base of the tree, the bark over these burrows often 
cracking the next spring, and the fine castings and borings sifting 
out. At the beginning of the second year the larva is about 
five-eighths inch long. The larva continues in the sap-wood 
during the second season, and it is at this time the most serious 
damage is done, for where several occur in a tree they almost 
girdle it. The next season they penetrate into the heart-wood, 
and several of them will fairly riddle a small tree with their 
cylindrical burrows. The full-grown larva continues this burrow 
out into the bark, often cutting clear across a tree. The upper 
part of the burrows are stuffed with fine borings and the lower 



522 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



part with long wood fibres. The full-grown larva is a Ught 
yellowish, cylindrical grub, about three-quarters inch long. The 
head is small, legs are lacking, and the body tapers gradually 
from the thorax backward, the segments being quite constricted. 
The third spring the larvae transform to pupae and about three 
weeks later the adult beetles emerge through large round holes. 
This habit is varied, according to Brooks, in some localities 
the majority of the beetles emerge in two years from the time 




Fig. 451. — Young apple tree protected from borers by a wire screen pro- 
tector. Photo by W. E. Rumsey. 

of hatching in place of in three, as is generally the case in the 
northern range of the insect. 

Control. — The females may be prevented from laying their 
eggs by wrapping the trunks with wire netting, building paper, 
or wood veneer. If non-rusting wire netting is used it may be 
left on and will also protect the trees from mice and rabbits. 
The paper or wood wrappings should be applied about May 1st, 
and removed in late summer. They should be tied to the tree 
tightly just below the crotch and should extend an inch or two 
into the soil below. The wire netting should be held out from the 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 



523 



trunk of the tree by a layer of cotton 
batting under it at the upper end. 
Various washes have been used to 
repel the beetles. Thick whale-oil 
or caustic soft-soap to which a pint 
of crude carboUc acid is added to 
every 10 gallons is often used and 
should be painted over the trunk so 
as to form a thick coating. Others 
recommend a thick coating of white- 
wash to which a Httle Portland 
cement is added to make it more 
adhesive. These should be applied 
by the middle of May and as often 
as need be to keep the trunk covered 
until late summer. Asphaltum, 
melted and painted onto the trunks, 
gives better results than any of the 
other materials of this nature, accord- 
ing to results secured in West Vir- 
ginia, but none of the treatments 
seems to be entirely satisfactory. 
If the trees are gone over every 
fall and spring, the egg scars and 
burrows of the young larvae may be 
detected and these may be cut out 
while still in the sap-wood, without 
much injury to the tree. When the 
borers get into the heart-wood it is 
almost impossible to dig them out 
without doing more injury to the tree, 
but they may sometimes be destroyed 
by injecting carbon bisulfide into the 
burrows and plugging the aperture 
with putty or clay. Where a tree 
has been nearly or quite girdled, it 
may sometimes be saved by bridge- 
grafting. Orchards kept free of grass 
and weeds and trees with smooth 

healthy bark are much less affected. Fig 452.— Young tree painted 
-P, , . , 1,1,1 with asphaltum to keep out 

Brooks reports, also, that the beetles borers. Photo by W.E.Rumsey. 



524 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 




may be poisoned by arsenicals; if so, the codling moth spray prob- 
ably is responsible for smaller numbers of borers being found in 
sprayed orchards than in neglected ones. 

The Flat-headed Apple-tree Borer * 

This species is more abundant than the preceding, but does 
less damage. It prefers trees which have been weakened or are 

diseased, and attacks almost all 
of the common orchard trees 
as well as numerous shade and 
forest trees, so that it is every- 
where common. The species 
is found from southern Can- 
ada to Mexico. The larvae live 
just beneath the bark, where 
they hollow out broad flat 

Fig. 453.-Thr7at-headed'appIe-tree channels which extend sHghtly 

borer (Chrysobothris femorata Fab.) : into the sap-WOod. The infest- 

a, larva; b, beetle; c, head of male; ,. , i j^ ^ i i .i 

d, pupa— twice natural size. (After ation may be detected by the 

Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) discoloration of the bark. 

Where abundant they will often completely girdle young trees, 

thus causing their death, and they are frequently found abundant 

under the loosening bark of the dying hmbs of large trees, as 

they infest not only the trunks, but the lower limbs. The adult 

beetle is about one-half inch long, dull metallic brown above, and the 

wing-covers taper sharply at the tip, somewhat Hke a click beetle. 

The wing-covers are ornamented as shown in the figure, and 

beneath them, as seen when in flight, the body is a bright metallic 

greenish-blue. The male is smaller and the head is green. The 

beetles are active during the heat of the day and may often be 

found on logs or injured trees. 

Life History. — The beetles emerge from the middle of May until 
mid-summer. The eggs are deposited in crevices of the bark, 
several often being laid together. The eggs are yellowish, irreg- 
ularly ribbed and about one-fiftieth inch long. The species 
receives its name from the shape of the larva, the thorax of which 
is very broadly expanded, so that it looks like the head, which is 
very small and ahnost concealed by it. The abdomen is much 
smaller and the whole body is flattened. The larva is about 
* Chrysobothris femorata Fab. Family Buprestidae. See F. E. Brooks, 
Farmers' Bulletin 1065, U. S. Dept. Agr. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 525 



one inch long, and usually rests in the curved position shown in 
Fig. 453. The larva becomes full grown in a single year and in 
the South may pupate in November, but in the North does not 
pupate until the next spring, when it remains as a pupa about 
three weeks. The beetle emerges through an elliptical exit hole, 
in contrast to the round hole of the round-headed borer. 

Control. — As this beetle is everywhere present, injury may 
always be expected if trees are not kept in a healthy condition, 
but if the orchard is well cared for it seldom suffers much damage. 
The same measures for preventing oviposition as suggested for 
the previous species are advised, but the repellant washes must 
be applied higher on the trunks and should extend to the lower 
branches as high as can be reached. 

The Oyster-shell Scale * 

Not infrequently young apple and pear trees are encrusted and 
killed by the Oyster-shell Scale, as are young poplars and maples. 
It is probably our most com- 
mon scale insect, being al- 
most always found on apple 
trees, on which it works on 
the bark or the twigs and 
trunk, reproducing even on 
old trunks, where the scales 
will be found under the loose 
bark and are undoubtedly 
a factor in causing the bark 
to slough off. All of the 
common orchard trees are 
occasionally infested but 
rarely injured, as are also 
maple, poplar, horse-chest- 
nut, willow and lilac. 
Quaintance and Sasscer give 
a list of over 100 trees, 
shrubs, and plants upon 
which the scales have been 
found. The species is a cos- 
mopobtan one, having been 




d 

Fig. 45-4. — The oyster-shell scale (Lepid- 
osaphes ultni Linn.): a, female scales on 
twig; b, female scales from above; c, 
same from below showing eggs; d, male 
scale — enlarged. (After Howard.) 



* Lepidosaphes ulmi Linn. Family Coccidce. See Quaintance and Sasscer, 
Farmers' Bulletin 723, U S. Dept. Agr., and references there given. 



'526 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



introduced into this country at an early date and now being found 
in every State, and occurs throughout the world, where the food- 
plants exist. 

The mature female scale is about one-eighth inch long, of a 
dark-brown color, sometimes almost blackish, and shaped some- 
what like an oyster-shell, as shown in Fig. 454. The male scale 
is much smaller, and with but one cast skin at the anterior end, 
as shown in the same figure. 

^Life History. — If one of the female scales be turned over 
during the winter, numerous oval, white eggs will be found under 
it, with the shriveled body of the female insect tucked away 




Fig. 455.— Three common scale insects; o, oyster-shell scale; h, scurfy scale; 
c, San Jos6 scale. All natural size. (Photo by Rumsey.) 

at the anterior end. These eggs hatch a week or two after the 
apples blossom, producing small yellowish insects, which look like 
mites as they crawl over the bark, which they often give a yel- 
lowish tinge where very abundant. The young insect is of 
microscopic size. It settles down after a few hours' wandering 
and begins sucking the sap from the bark. In a day or two 
long, white waxy filaments exude from over the body, which 
soon mat down and form the protecting scale, to which the cast 
skins are added when the insect molts. The female loses her 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 527 



legs, antennae, and eyes, after the first molt, and when full grown 
is an elongate, yellowish, jelly-like mass, being simply a "repro- 
ductive sack, with her sucking mouth parts, through which the 
food is taken, inserted in the tissues of the plant." The females 
become full grown in about eight to ten weeks, when they lay 
from 40 to 100 eggs and then die. In the North there is but 
one generation a year, but from the District of Columbia south- 
ward there is a partial or complete second generation. When 
the male insects are full grown they emerge from the scales as 
two-winged flies, fertilize the females and die at once. 
Control. — See below 

The Scurfy Scale * 

"The Scurfy Scale, while infesting a considerable number of 
plants (some 35 in 
number), is a less 
general feeder than 
the preceding spe- 
cies. It occurs prin- 
cipally upon ros- 
aceous plants, such 
as the apple, peach, 
pear, plum, cherry, 
etc., and also on 
currant and goose- 
berry among cultiv- 
ated plants, but 
seldom becomes so 
abundant as to 
cause particular in- 
j u r y or require 
specific treatment. ' ' 
It is especially com- 
mon on apple and 




Fig. 456. — The scurfy scale (Chionaspis furfura 
Fitch) : o, c, females, b, d, males — o, b, natural 
size, c, d, enlarged. (After Howard, U. S. 
Dept. Agr.) 



pear and less so on cherry and peach, though it has been observed 
as quite destructive to peach in the South, greatly stunting the 
trees, though none were actually killed. The female scale is a 

* Chionaspis furfura Fitch. Family Coccidce. See Quaintance and 
Sasscer, I.e. 



528 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

dirty-gray color, irregularly shaped as shown in Fig. 456, c 
The male scale is much smaller, elongate, snowy white, and with 
three distinct ridges. Fig. 456, d. It is an American insect, 
being common from Southern Canada to the Gulf States. The 
life history, as far as known, is practically identical with that 
of the last species. 

Control. — As the last two species are practically identical in 
habits, they may be controlled by the same methods. Where 
the trees are sprayed with lime-sulfur wash for the San Jose scale, 
there will be but little trouble with these scales, and where specific 
treatment is required for them experiments indicate that a thor- 
ough coating with the Mme-sulfur wash while the trees are dor- 
mant, preferably in the spring just before the buds open, is one 
of the most effective remedies. The wash does not seem to kill 
the eggs, but to kill the young soon after hatching, and has been 
used successfully on both fruit and shade trees, but if there be 
frequent rains in late spring, so that it is washed off, or if the 
scales are very thick, it is not always entirely effective, but yearly 
treatments will always prevent serious damage. 

Apple Plant-lice * 

Several species of aphids or plant-lice commonly infest the 
foliage of the apple, and less commonly that of the pear, and 
though they differ somewhat in appearance and habits they are 
sufficiently alike to be discussed together, as the same methods 
of control apply to all. 

The Apple-aphis f 

This is the common Apple-aphis of Europe, and was first 
noticed in this country late in the last century, when it spread 
to all parts of the country within a few years, probably being 

* See Sanderson, 13th Report, Del. Agr. Exp. Sta.; A. L. Quaintance, 
Circular 81, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr.; Gillette and Taylor, 
Bulletin 133, Colo. Agr. Exp. Sta., Parrott, Hodgkiss and Lathrop, Bulletins 
402, 415 and 431, N. Y. Agr. Expt. Station, Quaintance and Baker, Farmers' 
Bulletin 804, U. S. Dept. Agr., and Robert Matheson, Memoir 24, Cornell 
Agr. Expt. Station. 

t Aphis pomi DeG. Family Aphididoe. See above references, and J. B. 
Smith, Bulletin 143, N. J. Agr. Exp. Sta.; C. P. Gillette, Journal of Economic 
Entomology, Vol. I, p. 303, and H. E. Hodgkiss, Bulletin 461, N. Y. Agr. 
Expt. Station. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 



529 



d istributed on nursery trees. Only young trees are usually much in- 
j ured by this and the following 
species of aphids, old trees 
rarely being injured, except 
that where the aphids are ex- 
cessively abundant they 
sometimes injure the young 
fruit, causing it to become 
stunted and misshapen. The 
foliage of young trees soon be- 
comes covered with the ver- 
min, which feed on the under 
surfaces of the leaves, caus- 
ing them to curl up and then 
drop. This curling of the 
foliage is more commonly 
caused by this species than 
any other, though the rosy 
apple-aphis has a similar ef- 
fect. The aphids secret the 
sweet honey-dew very pro- p^^ 457 _g^^ggg ^j^l^^^ppl^.^pt^ig^^p;^^^ 
fusely and so attract large -pomi. After Baker, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 
numbers of ants, which feed upon it. The ants are always found 
associated with them, and the presence of numerous ants on a tree 





Fig. 458. — The apple-aphis, winged viviparous female — greatly enlarged, 
is a good indication of aphids. The honey-dew soon covers badly 



530 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARB 



infested foliage and upon it there grows a blackish fungus which 
gives the leaves a sooty appearance, often visible on the twigs 
after they drop, and a good indication of injury by this species. 
The full-grown wingless females are about one-twelfth inch long, 
and shaped as shown in Fig. 457. They are of a bright green 
color, though occasionally yellowish, and the tips of the ant- 
ennse, honey-tubes, and tail are black. The winged female is 
sHghtly longer and the wings expand about one-quarter inch, 
the head is deep oHve brown; the thorax is blackish, and there 
are three black spots on the lateral margin of the abdomen, 
but otherwise it is colored hke the wingless female. 




Fig. 459. — Nymphs of the apple-aphis, clustered on a leaf, showing developing 

wing-pads. 

Life History. — The minute, oval, shining black eggs are to 
be found on the twigs during the winter, especially at the 
crotches and around buds and scars. They hatch just before 
the leaf buds open and the young aphids become full grown in 
two or three weeks, all of them being wingless. During the next 
two or three weeks each of these females will give birth to from 
50 to 100 young, a few of which develop wings. All of the aphids 
of this second generation are also females, which give birth to 
live young without the intervention of males, which do not appear 
until fall. Their young develop in a week or ten days and most 
of them become winged and migrate to other trees. The develop- 
ment and reproduction continues in this fashion throughout the 
summer, both winged and wingless females being found in most 
colonies, though the size and coloration differ in the various 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 



531 



generations. Those which are to become winged may be dis- 
tinguished after the third molt by the blackish wing-pads at 
the sides of the body. With the first frost of fall the young 
develop into true males and females. Both are wingless, the 
male being much the smaller, has long antennae, is yellowish or 
rusty-brown, and is very active, while the female is larger, moves 
more slowly and is lighter in color, but later becomes a very 



' ^ 1 


^ 


if 




1 




\ 


^ 




^ 


\M 


m 


is^r 




i 




vri'\ 


^r-X / f^'-*^ 


' ■ f..-Jf:5^,i' 






w 


^^^^Yif 








K 


^^^i<r 




y 


\ 


"Wy 


t^- . 




y[ 


Ad Hh 


.- A 



Fig. 460. — ^The apple-aphis; o, young tree partially defoliated by the aphis; 
d, winter eggs on twig. 

dark green. The sexes mate and the females lay 1 to 3 eggs in 
the places mentioned. All of the aphids die by late fall and 
the eggs remain to give rise to new colonies in the spring. 

With the rapid multiplication above described it is not surpris- 
ing that the foliage is soon covered with thousands of aphids, 
and that with so many sucking the sap the leaves soon curl up 
and drop. This is often a serious drain upon the vitality of young 
trees, stunting their growth, and so weakening them that they 



532 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

are more liable to be attacked by other insects and diseases, 
while the premature dropping of the foUage prevents the full 
growth of the tree and the proper hardening of the wood before 
winter. This species shows marked preference for certain varieties 
of apples and rarely injures others. Apple, pear and quince are 
the only fruit trees infested by this species, which Hves upon 
them throughout the year. 

These lice may also attack the fruit as it begins to set, causing 
some dropping and a considerable amount of distortion to the 




Fig. 461. — ^The apple-aphis, winged fall migrants on leaf — natural size. 

fruit. Suoh fruits rarely attain full size and may easily be recog- 
nized at picking time. The rosy-aphis causes somewhat similar 
injury which may be even more severe. In normal years the 
injury to the fruit amounts to as much as the injury to the foliage. 

The Rosy Apple-aphis * 

This species is larger than the preceding, with a rounder body, 

and is commonly of a rosy color, though the wingless females 

vary from a salmon or tan color to slaty gray, purplish or black. 

It has been injurious only to apple in this country, where it has 

become widely distributed, but in Europe its native food-plants 

are various wild species of Sorbus and Crataegus. The wingless 

female is about one-tenth inch long, the head, thorax and margin 

* Aphis sorbi Kaltenbach. Family Aphididce. See Sanderson, and Gillette 
and Taylor {Aphis pyri Boyer), cited above; and W. E. Britton, 9th Report, 
State Entomologist of Connecticut, p. 343, also other citations below "Apple 
Plant-lice," and A. C. Baker and W. F. Turners, Jour. Agr. Research, Vol. 
VII, No. 7. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 533 

of the abdomen being dark reddish-brown, and covered with a 
powdery substance which gives it a deep blue color, the middle 
of the abdomen being lighter yellowish. The antenna; and legs 
are whitish, marked with dusky. The honey-tubes are pale yellow, 
tipped with black, and are long and tapering. Between the eyes 
are two small tubercles, and on the middle of the two segments 
in front of the tail are a pair of similar small tubercles, which 
are quite characteristic of this species. When fully developed 
the female becomes much darker and distended with young, which 
may be seen through the abdomen. The winged female is about 




Fig. 462. — The rosy apple-aphis (Aphis sorbi Kalt.): winged viviparous 
female greatly enlarged. 

the same length, the head, thorax and honey-tubes being black, 
and the abdomen yellowish-red. The winged females in the fall 
differ from those of the spring in lacking the small tubercles 
between the eyes, but both spring and fall winged females have 
the two pairs of small tubercles in front of the tail. They also 
differ in having a large black splotch on the centre of the abdomen, 
bands across the terminal abdominal segments, and spots along 
the sides, also black. The male is winged and similar to the winged 
viviparous females which migrate back to the apple in fall. 
The egg-lajdng females are wingless, very much smaller than 
the summer forms, and light lemon-yellow in color. 



534 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Life History — The eggs occur on the twigs, as do those of 
the last species, hatch about the same time,, and the first 

two or three generations de- 
velop on the apple in the 
same manner. Like the last 
species, the third generation is 
mostly winged females which 
migrate from the apple to some 
unknown food-plant, on which 
they pass the summer. The 
winged females return to the 
apple foliage in thef all and then 
give birth to young, which de- 
velop into the true males and 
females, which may be found 
Fig. 463.-The rosy apple-aphis, wingless laying their eggs in company 
viviparious female— greatly enlarged. ^^^^ the last and other species. 

This species curls the leaves to a greater extent than does the 
apple aphis, and is likewise accompanied by ants. Dr. Britton 
states that "the rosy apple aphis . . . seems especially prone 
to attack the fruit spurs and inner portions of the tree-top rather 





Fig. 464. — Apples showing typical aphis injury. {A'phis sorbi.) 

than the terminal twigs and exterior part," and that it "affects 
seriously the growth of the fruit," preventing its growth and de- 
velopment, and causing it to be gnarled and irregular in shape, 
similar to the damage by the last species sometimes observed. 
(See accompanying figure). 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 



535 



The European Grain-aphis * 

This species is found on the apple, pear, quince and plum in the 
spring and fall and on the small grains and various grasses during 
the summer. -Until recently it has been the more common form 
on apple in the East, but is not now so numerous as the apple- 
aphis. It is an old European species and was evidently imported 
to this country at an early date, as it is widely distributed through 
out the United States. The wingless females are distinctly 
smaller than the previous species, and are of a light green color, 
marked with transverse diamond-shaped bands of darker green. 





Fig. 465. — The European grain-aphis {Aphis avence Fab.): wingless viviparous 
female, and egg-laying or oviparous female — greatly enlarged. 

across the abdominal segments. The honey-tubes are shorter, 

distinctly enlarged at the middle and flared at the tip, which 

*Aphis avenoE Fab. Family Aphididce. See Th. Pergande, Bulletin 44, 
n. s., Div. Ent., U. S. Dept. Agr., p. 5 and authors cited above. The author 
described this species as Aphis fitchii in 1902, and although there seems to 
be no question that it feeds on grains and grasses during the summer, there 
are several reasons for believing that there are either two species or that the 
life history has not been sufficiently observed. Thus in some sections it is 
exceedingly common on grain but rare on apple, and in others just the opposite 
condition is found. Matheson, I.e., uses for this insect the name Aphis avence 
Fab., but Baker and Turner, Journal Agr. Research, Vol. XVIII, No. 6, call 
the species on apple the apple-grain aphis and ascribe to it the name Rho- 
palosiphum prunifolioe Fitch. They maintain that the name Aphis avence is 
a synonym for R. padi L. It is to be hoped that the systematists in this 
group will soon come to an agreement for the sake of uniformity. It should 
be mentioned that the latter authorities, I.e., under Rosy Apple-aphis, consider 
that species as Aphis malifolioe Fitch rather than as A. sorbi Kaltenbach. 



536 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



distinguish the species of this genus. The winged female has 
the head and thorax blackish, and the abdomen yellowish-green 
or brownish, usually lacking the greenish bands of the wingless 
form, and the honey-tubes are brown with rusty spots around the 
base. The species may be distinguished by the very short second 
fork of the median vein at the tip of the fore-wings. 

Life History. — The eggs are found on the apple and pear, and 
the first two generations in the spring develop as do those of the 
preceding species. All of the second, or sometimes the third, 
generation become winged and migrate to small grains and 




Fig. 466. — The European grain-aphis, migrating winged viviparous female 
of the second generation — greatly enlarged. 

grasses, on which they feed during the summer. In the fall 
winged females return to the fruit trees and give birth to young, 
which develop into wingless females and winged males, which mate 
and produce the winter eggs. Pergande states that '' the species 
is biennial and that the progeny of the spring migrants from the 
apple subsist almost exclusively upon various grains and grasses 
until the fall of the second year, when a generation of return 
migrants makes its appearance." This is certainly true in the 
South, where the aphids may be observed on grains throughout 
the winter, but it may be questioned whether they usually survive 
the winter on grains or grasses in the North. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 537 

Professor F. M. Webster* has observed this species on wheat in 
Ohio, and states that in mild winters it remains on the wheat, 
going down on the stems to just below the surface of the soil or 
to the upper roots, as we have observed it in Texas. "Here they 
go on reproducing when the temperature is favorable," he says, 
"the adults being apterous so far as observed by me, until spring, 
when they ascend to the foliage, the adults after this being both 
winged and wingless. On the stems and roots below the surface 
of the ground they are of a greenish color, tinged with reddish- 
brown, especially posteriorly, the full-grown individuals often 
being wholly of a dark brown. It is during autumn that they 
do their greatest injury to the wheat by sucking the juices from 
the young plants, often, if on poor land and if in dry weather, 
checking their growth and causing the foliage to turn yellow." 
This species is seldom much in evidence on grains or grasses in 
midsummer and rarely becomes very injurious to them. On 
the apple it is abundant on the young fohage and particularly on 
the flower buds and blossoms, where it is much more common than 
the other species. It does not, however, curl the foUage nearly 
as severely as the other species, due to its earUer migration. 
•' Control. — It has been found in many places that by delaying 
the Ume-sulfur spray as appUed for scale until the buds are 
beginning to open in the spring the grower may effectively con- 
trol the aphis, the spray killing at this time the over-wintering 
eggs. It must be admitted, however, that there are times when 
this treatment is not effective. Just why is not known. When 
this spray is omitted or fails to kill the aphids, they may be 
controlled by spraying with Blackleaf 40 at the rate of 1 to 1000, 
four pounds of soap being added to the mixture if it is applied 
without bordeaux or the arsenicals. Hodgkiss recommends a 
spray called the nicotine-lime spray, made by adding two to 
four pounds copper sulphate and six pounds lime to the 1 to 
1000 solution of nicotine sulphate (Blackleaf 40). The above 
amount for each 100 gallons of the spray. This acts to some 
extent as a deterrent as well as an insecticide. Any spraying 
done must be done before the leaves curl, since the insects must 
be hit with the spray to be killed and when they are protected 
by curled leaves it is impossible to hit any great number of them. 
*See- Bulletin 51, Ohio Agr. Expt. Station, p. 111. 



538 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

The Tent Caterpillar * 

From the earhest times the webs of the tent caterpillar have 
adorned the neglected, wayside apple and cherry trees in all 
parts of the country east of the Rocky Mountains. On the 
Pacific coast a nearly related species has very similar habits. 
The adult moths are common in July in the North or in May in 
the Gulf States. They are stout-bodied, of a reddish-brown 
color, with two nearly parallel white bands extending obliquely 
across the fore-wings. The females have a wing expanse of about 
1| inches, while the males are smaller and may be distinguished 
by their feathery antennae. The sexes soon mate and the females 
deposit their eggs about five or six weeks after apples blossom. 
The egg-mass is from one-half to three-quarters inch long and 
forms a grayish-brown, knot-hke band around the twig on which 
it is laid, closely resembling the bark in color. Each mass con- 
tains about 200 eggs, placed on end, packed closely together and 
covered with a hght brown, frothy glue, which gives a tough, 
smooth, glistening surface to the whole mass. The little cater- 
pillars hatch just as the leaf buds are expanding in the spring. 
Ofttimes they emerge before the leaf-buds have expanded suf- 
ficiently to furnish any food, in which case they satisfy their 
hunger with the glutinous covering of the egg-mass, spinning a 
thin web over it. Soon they are able to bore into the buds and 
a web is commenced at the nearest crotch. Wild cherry and 
apple are the favorite food-plants and are often stripped of their 
foliage year after year, but all of the common fruit trees are more 
or less frequented, and when very abundant the common shade 
trees are attacked and occasionally one is defoliated. The little 
caterpillars from one egg-mass cooperate in spinning the tent 
which furnishes them shelter at night and during cold or wet 
weather. This is gradually enlarged with new layers of silk, 
the caterpillars hving beneath the outer layers. The caterpil- 
lars are grown in five or six weeks, when they become exceed- 
ingly restless and wander away from the nest in search of suit- 
able places for spinning their cocoons. The full-grown caterpil- 
lar is about two inches long, deep black in color, sparsely covered 
with yellowish hairs, with a white stripe down the middle of 

* Malacasoma americana Fab. Family LasiocompidcB. See A. L. Quaint- 
ance, Farmers' Bulletin 662, U. S. Dept. Agr.; V. H. Lowe, Bulletin 152, 
N Y Agr. Exp. Sta.; E. P. Felt, 14th Report State Ent. N. Y., pp. 177-190. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 539 




Fig. 467. — Egg mass on 
twig — natural size. 





Fig. 468. — Ejig mays cov- 
ered with web of newly 
hatched caterpillars. 




Fig. 409. — Newly-formed web. 



Fi(,. 1,(1. Wcl. hcanii.t; hail-KJuwa 
caterpillars — reduced in size. 



540 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



the back. On the side of each segment is an oval pale blue 

spot with a broader vel- 
vety black spot adjoin- 
ing it in front, giving 
somewhat the effect of an 
eye-spot. Having found a 
suitable place under loose 
bark, in a fence, in the 
grass or rubbish beneath 
the tree, or in the shelter 
of some neighboring build- 
ing, the caterpillar settles 
down and proceeds to en- 
case itself in a thin cocoon 
of tough white silk, in which 
it transforms to the pupa. 
About three weeks later 
the adult moth emerges 
from the pupa to con- 

tinue the life cycle, there 

Fig. 471. — ^Tent caterpillars on web — one- being but one generation 
half natural size. (Photo by Weed.) ^ yeSiT. 

The caterpillars are held in check by numerous parasitic 





Fig. 472.— The tent caterpillar moth. (After Lowe.) 
insects, some 24 species having been found preying upon them 
by Mr. W. F. Fiske in New Hampshire,* as well as by preda- 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 



541 



ceous soldier bugs (Podisus spp.) and many of our common birds. 
Large numbers of the caterpillars are also carried off by a bac- 
terial disease. 

Several species of little chalcis-flies are parasitic in the eggs 
and destroy a large proportion of them. Were it not for these 
natural enemies the tent caterpillar would become a much more 
serious pest. 

Control. — The egg-masses may easily be detected and pruned 
off during the winter, and it would be well to leave them in a box 




Fig. 473. — Cocoons of the tent caterpil- 
lar, natural size. (After Lowe.) 



Fig. 474. — Web of the tent cater- 
pillar riddled by birds. (Photo 
by Weed.) 



covered with netting so that the parasites may escape. Neglected 
apple and wild-cherry trees should be destroyed, as they harbor 
this and other pests and are usually valueless. The caterpillars 
may be quickly destroyed by spraying with Paris green or arse- 
nate of lead just after the foliage comes out, before the trees 
blossom. If there are but a few nests the caterpillars may be 

* See W. F. Fiske, Tech. Bulletin 6, N. H. Agr. Exp. Sta. 



542 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



destroyed in them by spraying the nest on a cloudy or cool day 
with pure kerosene. Apply the spray with an extension rod and 
fine nozzle so that the nest will be thoroughly soaked, without 
spraying the surrounding fohage. Or the caterpillars may be 
destroyed by burning the nests with a torch while they are in 
them, or while young they may be swabbed out with a broom or 
brush and crushed. 

No injury need be feared in an orchard sprayed for codling- 
moth and other insects. 

The Yellow-necked Apple Caterpillar * 

During late summer the tips of apple limbs are often found 
defoliated for a foot or two and if examined a mass of caterpillars 

will be found huddled together 
as if confessedly guilty. Us- 
ually these will prove to be- 
long to this or the following 
species. The full-grown yel- 
low-necked apple caterpillar 
is about two inches long, with 
a jet black head and the next 
segment, often called the neck, 
a bright orange-yellow, from 
which the insect is named. 
Down the middle of the back 
runs a black stripe, and on 
either side of the body are 
three stripes of black alternat- 
ing with four of yellow and the 
body is thinly clothed with 
long, soft white hairs. While 
young the caterpillars feed 
only on the under surfaces 
of the leaves, but as they be- 
come larger the whole leaf ex- 




__.„__.J 



Fig. 475. — Yellow-necked apple cater- 
pillars assembled on twig in natural 
position — from life, much reduced. 

cept the stem, is devoured. They feed together in colonies, usually 

starting at the tip of a limb, where the eggs were laid, and strip- 

*Datana ministra Drury. Family Notodontidce. See A. S. Packard, 
Memoirs National Academy of Sciences, Vol. VII, p. 106; E. D. Sanderson, 
Bulletin 139, N. H. Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 213. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 



543 



ping the foliage toward the base, and are often found clustered 
together in a solid mass. If the limb is jarred or a caterpillar 
touched, it at once assumes a position characteristic of this 
genus, throwing the head and tail in the air with a jerk and 
cUnging to the limb by the abdominal prolegs, as shown in 
Fig. 475. The wings of the adult moth expand about two 
inches and are a reddish-brown color, while the head and 
thorax are chestnut-brown. The fore- wings have three to 
five transverse lines, one or 
two spots, and the outer 
margin of a dark color, and 
the hind-wings are pale yel- 
lowish without markings. 

Life History. — The winter 
is passed in the pupal stage 
in the soil, from which the 
moths emerge from May to 
July. The round, white eggs 
are laid on the leaves in 
masses of 75 to 100, and hatch 
during mid-summer. The 
caterpillars feed during the 
late summer and become full 
grown in four or five weeks, 
when they enter the earth 
for from 2 to 4 inches and 
there transform to naked 
brown pupse, without making any cocoons, 
eration in the Northern and Middle States. 

The species occurs throughout the Northern and Middle States 
east of the Rocky Mountains, and in the far South there seem to 
be no records of the species. Though most common on apple, it 
also feeds on pear, cherry, quince, and plum, and on hickory, 
oak, walnut, chestnut and other shade and forest trees, some- 
times defoliating them, as do other nearly related species. 

Control. — As the work of these caterpillars is soon noticed, 
and as they habitually feed in colonies, it is an easy matter to 
hand pick and destroy them, or swab them off the limbs with a 
rag or waste saturated with kerosene, or where a colony is clus- 




FiG. 476. — The yellow-necked apple 
caterpillar {Datana rninistra Dru.): 
mature larvae and moth — natural size. 



There is but one gen- 



544 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



tered at the tip of a limb, it may be cut off and crushed. If this 
and other caterpillars are abundant on the foliage in late sum- 
mer, it will be well to spray with arsenate of lead, 3 pounds to 
the barrel, while the caterpillars are small, which will be about 
six to eight weeks after the apple blossoms fall 

The Red-humped Apple Caterpillar * 

This species is often associated with the preceding in very 
similar injury, and has practically the same habits. The name 

is given on account of the prom- 
inent hump on the fourth seg- 
ment of the larva which, with 
the head, is a bright coral red. 
The mature caterpillar is striped 
with yellowish-white, alternating 
with dark brown or blackish 
lines, and a double row of 
black spines extends along the 
back. The fore-wings of the 
moth expand about Ij inches, 
are dark brown on the inner 
and grayish on the outer margin ; 
they have a dark-brown dot 
near the middle, a spot near 
each angle, and several longi- 
tudinal streaks of the same color 
along the posterior margin. The 
hind-wings of the male are brown- 
ish and of the female dusky brown, the body is light brown with 
the thorax of a darker shade. 

This species occurs throughout the United States and feeds 
on apple, plum, rose, thorn, cherry, blackberry, willow, oak, 
hickory, and other trees and shrubs. The caterpillars become 
full grown in late summer or early fall and then spin loose silken 
cocoons to which are attached bits of earth and rubbish, so that 

* Schizura concinna Smith and Abbott. Family NotodontidcB. See A.S. 
Packard Memoirs National Academy of Sciences, Vol. VII, p. 212; E. D. 
Sanderson, Bulletin 139, N. H. Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 216. 




Fig. 477. — ^The red-humped apple 
caterpillar (Schizura concinna 
S. & A.)— slightly enlarged. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 



545 



they closely resemble their surroundings as they lie on the ground 
beneath rubbish, or just under the surface of the soil. After some 
time the larvse transform to pupae, in which stage the winter is 
passed. Otherwise the life history is practically the same as the 
preceding species, except 
that there is some evidence 
of there being two genera- 
tions in the South. The 
larvse of this species are 
very frequently parasitized 
by little ichneumon-flies * 
which destroy whole colonies 
of them while still young, the 
inflated skins being found on 
the under side of a leaf, often 
perforated by the round exit 
holes of the parasite. 

Control. — Same as for the 
preceding species. 




Fig. 478. — Eggs of the red-bumped 
apple caterpillar — enlarged. 



The Apple Leaf-miner f 

This is the most common leaf-miner of the apple and makes 
small brown trumpet-shaped blotches under the upper surfaces 
of the leaves. It has not been regarded as a serious pest until 
recently, but during the last few years it has become so abundant 
as to do serious injury to apple foliage in New England and the 
Middle Atlantic States, in some instances largely defohating the 
trees. It is a native insect which is generally distributed east of 
the Rocky Mountains 

The adult is a httle moth whose wings expand about one-third 
inch and are broadly fringed as shown in the figure. Clemens 
describes it as follows: "Head and antennae shining dark brown, 
face ochreous. Fore-wings uniform, shining dark brown with a 
purpUsh tinge, slightly dusted with pale ochreous; cilia of the 

*himneria fugitiva Say, and L. cedemasim Ashm. Family I chneumonidcB 

t Tischeria malifoliella Clemens. Family Tineidce. See A. L. Quaintance, 

Bulletin 68, Part III, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr.; C. D. Jarvis, 

Bulletin 45, Storrs (Conn.) Agr. Exp. Sta.; C. O. Houghton, Bulletin 87, 

Del. Agr. Exp. Sta. 



546 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

general hue. Hind-wings dark gray; cilia with a rufous tinge." 
The full-grown larva is one-third inch long, somewhat flattened, 
and tapers from the broad thorax to the last segment. It is 
light green except the back of the prothorax and the anal seg- 
ment, which are brown. 

Life History. — The moths emerge in late April in Delaware and 
in May in Connecticut. The small greenish-yellow, blister-hke 

eggs are elliptical in outline, about one- 
fiftieth inch long, and are attached 
closely to the surface of the leaf. They 
hatch in from eight to t e n days and 
the young larvae mine directly into the 
leaf from the under side of the eggs. 
The larvse become full grown in about 
three weeks and pupate in their mines, 
the pupal stage lasting eight to ten 
days. Thus the whole life cycle re- 
quires but about thirty-three days in 
the District of Columbia, where there 
are four generations a year, and about 
six weeks in Connecticut, where there 
are but two generations. The larvae 
of the last generation line their mines 
with silk and in them pass the winter 
in the fallen leaves, transforming to 
pupse the next spring. 

Control. — As the larvse pass the win- 
ter in the fallen leaves, the insect may 
be entirely controlled by plowing 
under the leaves in late fall or early 
spring or by raking them up and burn- 
FiG. 479. — Trumpet -shaped ing them. When the larvse become so 
rmne of the apple leaf-miner abundant as to threaten serious injury 
{I tscnenamahfoliella Clem.) i i -n j • 

(Photo by Quaintance, U. S. m summer they may be killed m 
Dept. Agr.) their mines by spraying the foliage 

with 10 to 15 per cent kerosene emulsion, but this is not satis- 
factory in the early fall. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 547 



The Pistol Case-bearer* and the Cigar Case-bearer f 
These interesting little case-bearers have long been known as 
apple insects, but only in comparatively recent years have they 
done sufficient injury to attract attention. Both species have 




Fig. 480 — The pistol case-bearer {Coleophora malivorella Riley) . a, apple 
twig showing larval cases and work on leaves; b, larva; c, pupa; d, moth, 
6, c, d, enlarged. (After Riley.) 

done serious damage in New York by boring into the young buds 
and blossoms, and eating off the surface of the leaves, so that in 
some cases orchards have been practically defoliated The pistol 




Fig. 481. — The cigar case-bearer" (CoZeop^ora fletcherella Fernald): a, adult 

ftmale; b, side view of pupa and upper view of cremaster of same; c, larva; 

d, egg; e, venation ot wings — much enlarged. (After Hammar, U. S. 

Dept. Agr.) 

* Coleophora malivorella Riley. Family Elachistidce. See V. H. Lowe. 

Bulletin 122, N. Y. Agr. Exp. Sta. 

t Coleophora fletcherella Fernald. Family Elachistida;. See M. V. Slinger- 
land, Bulletin 93, Cornell Univ. Agr. Sta. ; A. G Hammar, Bulletin 80, Part li, 
Buieau of Entomology, U S. Dept. Agr. 



548 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



case-bearer seems to be generally distributed over the eastern 
United States and southern Canada, while the cigar case-bearer 
is known to occur in Canada from Nova Scotia to British Columbia, 
in New York, Michigan, Kansas and New Mexico. As both 
insects are readily carried on nursery stock they are doubtless 
much more widely distributed than the records indicate. 

Life History. — The life histories of the species are very similar 
and have been most interestingly described in detail by the 
authors cited. The young caterpillars hibernate in their little 
cases, which are attached to the twigs usually near or upon the buds. 
Those of the pistol case-bearer are about one-eighth inch long 
and resemble the bark in color. A short time before the leaf- 
buds burst in the spring, the larvae become active and attack 
the growing buds, gnawing through the outer cover to feed on 

the tender tissues beneath. 
Later they feed on the young 
leaves, making small holes 
through the surface and feed- 
ing on the soft tissue within in 
much the same manner as a true 
leaf-miner In feeding they do 
not leave the case, but reach out 
cigar g^g f^j. a^g possible from it. As 




Fig. 482.— The 
case-bearer : a 
cigar-shaped 



cases of the 
upper view of the 
case; showing the they grow they enlarge their 



smooth and the hairy sides and the ^ases, which finally assume the 
three-lobed hind opening; b, side 



view of same; c, the case as it appears snape 
in the spring with the tube-like 
addition; d, the fall and winter case — 
much enlarged. (After Hammar, 
U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



characteristic of the 

species. 

Those of the cigar case-bearer 

are straight and resemble a 
miniature cigar, being of a brown color and composed of bits 
of leaf bound together with silk. The cases of the pistol case- 
bearer resemble an old-fashioned pistol in shape, the butt being 
at the upper end, and are blackish, being composed of excrement 
and silk. As the caterpillars become larger they devour the entire 
leaf, except the midrib and large veins, and also attack the flower 
buds, flowers and fruit. The larvse of the cigar case-bearer be- 
come full grown about the middle of June in New York, when 
they migrate to the twigs, where they attach their cases firmly to 
the bark and, turning around so that their heads are outward. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 



549 



transform to pupae. The pupal stage lasts ten or twelve days, most 
of the moths emerging in early July. The pistol ease-bearers 
become full grown and transform about a month earher. The 
adults of both species are Httle grayish moths with wings expand- 
ing about one-half inch, and broadly fringed with long hairs. 
The eggs of both species are laid singly on the under sides of the 
leaves and hatch in ten days to two weeks. The young cater- 
pillars which hatch from them feed within the leaf for a short time 
as leaf-miners, before they, make their little cases and migrate to 
the twigs, where they remain until spring. 




Fig. 483. — Apple leaf with cigar case-bearers at work— natural size. (After 
Hammar, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

Con/roZ.— Spraying with Paris green or arsenate of lead just 
before the leaf buds open and again as soon as the foliage is out, 
will destroy the Httle caterpillars. 

The Bud Moth * 

This is a European species which was first noted in this country 
in 1841, and has since spread throughout the Northern and Middle 

* Tynetocera ocellana Schiff. Family Tortricidce. See M. V. Slingerland, 
Bulletin 107, Cornell Univ. Agr. Exp. Sta.; W. E. Britton, 9th Report, State 
Entomologist of Connecticut, p. 353. 




550 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

States east of the Rocky Mountains and to Oregon and Idaho. 
The larvae feed on all of the common deciduous fruit trees, and 
blackberry, but are most commonly injurious to apple. The 
adult moth is a dark ash gray with broad yellowish bands across 
the fore-wings, which expand about five-eighths inch. The 
full-grown caterpillar is one-half inch long, of a light chestnut- 
brown color, with the head, legs and thoracic shield dark brown 
or black, smooth and shiny. 

Life History. — The larvae hibernate in 

small, oval, silken cases attached to the 

bark of a twig. About the time the buds 

begin to swell in the spring, the caterpillars 

Fig. 484.— The bud moth ^ore into them, thus early protecting them- 

(Tmetocera ocellana selves from insecticides. As the young 

Schiff.) — twice natural , r u au j. -n ^ 

size. (After W. E. leaves and flowers untold, the caterpillars 

Britton.) form nests for themselves by tying the leaves 

together, and destroy the young foliage and flower buds, but do 
not leave the nests in feeding. In New York, they become full 
grown during June, 
and transform to 
pupae in the silk-Uned- 
nests. About ten 
days later the moths 
emerge and lay the 
eggs singly or in 
small clusters on the 
under surface of the 
leaves. The egg is 
disk-like, much flat- 
tened, usually oval 
in shape, and trans- 
parent, resembling a 
minute drop of 
water. The eggs 
soon hatch and the Fig. 485. — Young apple leaves in fested by the 
young caterpillars bud moth larva. (After W. E. Britton.) 

feed on the under sides of the leaves, protecting themselves by a 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 



551 



thin silken web. In the fall they migrate to the twigs and form 
the small silken cases in which they pass the winter. 

Control. — Dr. Britton reports that the caterpillars may be 




\i^' 



Pig. 486.— Apple leaf injured by the bud moth caterpillar — natural size. 
(After W. E. Britton.) 

effectively destroyed by spraying with arsenate of lead 1 pound 
tc 10 gallons, which should be applied just as the buds are bursting 
and agam before the trees blossom. 



552 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



The Codling Moth * 

The common apple worm, the larva of the codling moth, is 
probably the best known and most generally destructive of all 
the apple insects. It is an old European insect and has been 




Fig. 487. — ^The codling moth (Cydia pomonella Linn.) : a, egg — greatly enlarged; 
b, young larva hatching from egg; c, larva in winter cocoon on inside of a 
bit of bark; d, pupa — original; e, moth — after Slingerland — aU much 
enlarged. 

distributed to almost all parts of the world where apples are 

grown. The "wormy" apple is so well known that the work 

of the larva needs no description, but the aggregate loss which 

it occasions is not always appreciated, as most of the injured 

fruit drops and no account is kept of the windfalls, and if the picked 

* Cydia pomonella Linn. Family TortricidcB. See A. L. Quaintance. 
Yearbook U. S. Dept. Agr , 1907, p. 435; E. L Jenne, Bulletin 80, Part I, 
Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr.; C. B. Simpson, BuUetm 41, n. s., 
Div Ent , U. S. Dept. Agr. ; E. D. Sanderson, Bulletin 143, N. H. Agr. Exp. 
Sta ; and bulletins of the State Agricultural Experiment Stations. Laspeyresia 
is now said to be the correct generic name, both it and Carpocapsa takmg 
precedence over Cydia. However, as things now stand any one of the three 
names may be used. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 



553 



fruit is not seriously infested the grower does not notice that he 
has lost a large part of the crop, though where the pest is abundant 
so much of the fruit is injured that but httle remains to be picked 
on unsprayed trees. In 1907 Professor Quaintance estimated 
the annual loss due to this insect in the United States at about 
$12,000,000, and this estimate must now be about doubled. 

The moths fly at dusk and p 
are rarely seen, as during the 
day they rest on the bark 
which they closely resemble 
in color. The wings expand 
about three-quarters inch and 
have somewhat the appear- 
ance of grayish-brown watered 
silk, but when more closely 
examined are seen to be 
crossed by numerous lines of 
gray and brown scales. Near 
the hind angle of each front 
wing is a large dark brown 
spot marked with streaks of 
brown or gold. The hind- 
wings are of a lighter grayish- 
brown color, darker toward the 
outer margin. 

Life History. — The winter is 
passed by the full-grown larvae 
in their small white cocoons 
beneath, or in crevices of, the bark, 
blossom the larvae transform to small 




Flu. 488. — Cocoons of codling moth as 
found attached to a piece of loose 
bark — natural size. (After Slinger- 
land.) 



About the time the apples 
brown pupae, from which 
the moths emerge in two to three weeks. If the evenings be warm 
the females commence to deposit their eggs within a few days, 
laying most of them on the foUage. A female lays from 60 
to 75 eggs and though most of them are placed on leaves near 
the young fruit, ofttimes they are deposited on hmbs or trees with 
no fruit. The individual egg looks much like a small white 
blister about the size of a pinhead. It is at first quite trans- 
parent, but later a brownish or blackish streak is seen, showing 



554 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



the little caterpillar forming within. The eggs hatch in from five 
to ten days, depending upon the season and temperature, most 
of them hatching about three or four weeks after the blossoms 
fall. 

The young apple worm is at first only about one-sixteenth 
inch long, of a whitish color, with a shining black head, and 
with distinct blackish tubercles over the body, which become 
quite indistinct in later life. Upon hatching the young larva 
usually feeds a little on the tender parts of the leaves before 
it crawls to the nearest apple, which is probably 8 or 10 inches 




Fig. 489. — Pupae of codling moth in cocoons — enlarged. (After Slingerland.) 

distant. Over 90 per cent of the larvae enter the apples through 
the blossom end and feed a Httle within the calyx before they bore 
inward to the core. The others enter at the stem end or at the 
side, where a leaf may touch the apple. The seeds of the apple 
seem to be most relished, for the larva soon hollows out each of 
them as well as the surrounding core, its work being indicated 
by the well-known excreta thrown out from the calyx, showing 
the "worminess" of the apple. The larva becomes full grown 
in from three to four weeks and eats it way out through the side 
of the apple, leaving a round exit hole, and seeks a place to form 
its cocoon. The full-grown caterpillar is about three-quarters 
inch long, whitish or pinkish in color, with a brown head and 
faint tubercles over the body, and with three pairs of thoracic 
legs and five pairs of abdominal prolegs. The cocoons are found 
mostly on the trunks of the trees, as in winter. The pupal stage 
of the first summer generation lasts ten to twelve days, and 
the moths emerge about eight weeks after the eggs were laid. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 555 



In northern New England but 2 or 3 per cent of the larvse 
pupate, the majority hibernating over winter, so that there is 
but a small second generation. 
Farther south a large number 
transform and in the Middle 
States there are two full gene- 
rations. In the far South, as in 
Georgia, Arkansas and New 
Mexico, there are three gene- 
rations. In any event the 
larvae leave the apples in the 
fall and hibernate in their 
cocoons, those but partly 
grown usually dying before 
spring. The hfe cycle of the 
second and third generations 
are essentially the same as 
that of the jfirst, except that 




Fig. 490. — Pupa skin of codling moth 
remaining attached to cocoon — en- 
larged. 



a large proportion of the eggs are laid on the fruit and more of 
the larvse enter the apples through the sides or stem end. The 
work of the larvse of the later broods is also somewhat 

different, as much of it con- 
sists of eating around the 
blossom end or on the face 
of the apple, eating out small 
holes or tunneling under the 
skin, as shown in Fig. 496. 
When two or three genera- 
tions occur, the injury by 
them often becomes very 
severe if the first generation 
has not been largely destroyed 
by thorough spraying. Very similar injury is done by the larva of 
the lesser apple worm, * which is very difficult to distinguish, but 
fortunately the same treatment will control both pests. 

Control. — Scraping the loose bark from the trees and keeping the 
bark smooth removes the favorable conditions for the hibernation 

* Enarmonia prunivora Walsh. Family Tortricidce. See A. L. Quaintance, 
Bulletin 68, Part V, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept, Agr.; Foster and 
JBnes, Bulletin 80, Part III, ibid. 




Fig. 491. — Young larva of codling moth 
in calyx cavity of apple — enlarged. 



556 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



of the larvae. A large proportion of the hibernating larvae are de- 
stroyed by woodpeckers and nut-hatches during the winter and 

they should be attracted to the orchards 
by hanging up bones and suet. Pick- 
ing up the fallen apples and destroying 
them before the larvae have left them to 
form their cocoons will do much to 
lessen the numbers and will aid in 
the control of other insects. Cellars and 
storage houses where apples are kept 
over winter should be screened to pre- 
vent the exit of the moths in the spring. 
The principal method of control, how- 
ever, is in spraying with arsenicals, 
which, when properly done, will destroy 
practically all of the larvae. Although 
Paris green and arsenite of lime have long 
been used for this purpose, arsenate of 
lead is now preferred on account of its 
superior adhesive qualities and because 
there is less danger of burning the foliage 

FiG.492.-Larvaofthecod- with it. Where Bordeaux mixture is 
ling moth only a few 
days old, showing tuber- 
cles — much enlarged. 
(After Slingerland.) 

sprayed for fungous dis- 
eases at the same time 
Paris green may be ap- 
plied with it and the 
Bordeaux will cause it to 
adhere as well as arsen- 
ate of lead and there will 
be little danger of burn- 
ing with a good quality 
of Paris green. One-third 

pound per barrel of Paris 

o-rppr. 9 nr •^ nminds of FiG. 493.-Full grown larva of the codling moth 

green, A or 6 pounds ol —enlarged about three times. (After Sling- 

arsenate of lead, or 1 land.) 

quart of stock solution of arsenite of lime are the proper strengths 

for general use. The first spraying for the codling moth should 





INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 



557 



be given just after the blossoms have fallen and before the 
sepals of the calyx close, the object being to place the poison 
in the calyx cavity so that the httle larva will be poisoned when it 




Fig. 494. — Young apples in right condition to spray tot the codling moth 
and with calyx sepals closed too far for effective spraying. (After Quaint- 
ance, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

enters and feeds in the calyx a few weeks later. In general this 
spraying should be given within a week or ten days after two- 





FiG. 495. — Work of the first generation of codling moth larva). 

thirds of the petals have dropped, but the time will depend upon 
the variety and the season. 

In the West great emphasis has recently been placed upon 



558 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

using a coarse spray with a high pressure, 100 to 250 pounds, 
which will drive the spray through the bases of the stamens 
into the lower calyx cavity, and though excellent results are 
undoubtedly secured in this way, experiments in the East indicate 
that a mist spray is equally effective if thoroughly applied, 
whether the lower calyx cavity is reached or not. There is no 
question, however, of the importance of maintaining a good 
pressure, of at least 100 pounds, so that the spray may be forced 
through the foliage; for the blossoms point in all directions, 
and the spray must be forced through the tree to reach those 
pointing inward on the opposite side. An angle on the end of 




Fig. 496. — Work of the second generation of codling moth larvse. 

the spray-rod which will turn the nozzle at 35 or 45 degrees will 
greatly aid in reaching all parts of the tree. 

The second spraying should be appUed three or four weeks 
after the blossoms fall, just as the eggs are hatching. At this 
time the object should be to cover the fohage thoroughly, so 
that the young larvse may be killed while they feed on the fohage. 
Consequently both the upper and under surfaces of the leaves 
should be coated. If the first spraying has been well done, the 
second will often be unnecessary where there is but a partial 
second brood or where the pest is well under control, but as it 
is often necessary to spray for the fungous diseases at this time 
it is well to add the arsenical, which but shghtly increases the 
cost. Where there is a full second generation, as in most of the 
Middle and Pacific States, a third application as the second 
generation of larvae are hatching, will be found advisable about 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 559 

nine or ten weeks after the petals fall, and a fourth two or three 
weeks later may be necessary. With thorough spraying not 
over 1 or 2 per cent of the picked fruit should be wormy, as 
most of the wormy fruit will drop early in the season. 

Recent experiments have shown that quite as effective codling 
moth control can be secured by dusting with powdered arsenate 
of lead with sulphur as the carrier. Some of the advantages of 
dusting are discussed under the description of the dusting practice 
in an early chapter. 

The Apple-maggot or " Railroad Worm " * 

The apple-maggot has long been known as the worst pest of 
summer and fall apples in the New England States, and has 
extended its injuries to eastern New York and southeastern 
Canada. It has been recorded from Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, 
Minnesota, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, but seems to be only 
occasionally injurious there, though it has been reared from 
haws in IHinois and Wisconsin, which would indicate that the 
insect is native in these States. Evidently it is widely distributed 
throughout the northeastern United States, but for some reason 
is most injurious in New England. The fruit is injured by the 
small white maggots, which burrow through the flesh, leaving 
discolored streaks through it, often becoming so numerous as 
entirely to honeycomb the pulp which breaks down into a yellowish 
mass merely held together by the skin. An apple quite fair 
exteriorly will often be found to be almost completely "rail- 
roaded" by the maggots, although brown, slightly sunken 
streaks in the skin usually indicate their presence. Sweet and 
subacid varieties of summer and early fall apples are worst injured, 
but where the pest develops unchecked, winter sorts, such as the 
Baldwin and particularly the Northern Spy, are often seriously 
injured. 

The parent of the maggot is a little fly slightly smaller than 
the house-fly, of a blackish color, with yellowish head and legs, 

* Rhagoletis pomonella Walsh. Family Trypetidce. See A. L. Quaintance 
Circular 101, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr.; F. L. Harvey, Report 
Maine Agr. Exp. Sta., 1889, p. 190; W. C. O'Kane, Journal of Economic 
Entomology, IV, 173, and Bulletin N. H. Expt. Sta. No. 171, also H. H. P. 
Severin, Bulletin 251, Maine Agr. Expt. Sta. 



560 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



greenish eyes, and three or four white bands across the abdomen. 
The wings are marked by four black bands, as shown in Fig. 497, 
which distinguish it from similar flies found on apples. 

Life History. — The flies emerge during July in New England 
and hve for several weeks. The females at once commence 
depositing their eggs in the early varieties of apples. The eggs 
are laid just under the skin in a vertical position, on the cheek of 
the apple. The egg is elHptical, about one-thirtieth inch long, 
and yellowish in color. A female will lay 300 to 400 eggs, 12 
or 15 often being placed in a single apple. The eggs hatch in 
four or five days and the little maggots at once burrow into the 
pulp. By means of a vertical motion of the head they rasp the 
pulp with the small, black hook-like mouth parts, and in less than 




Fig. 497. — The apple-maggot (Rhagoletis pomonella Walsh): a, adult; b, 
larva or maggot; c, funnel of spiracle on head; d, puparium; e, portion 
of apple showing injury by maggots; a, b, d — enlarged; e — reduced. 
(After Quaintance, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

a minute can tunnel their own length. They become full grown 
in four to six weeks during the summer, but if only partly grown 
when winter sets in, many of them seem to hibernate until spring. 
The mature maggot is about one-third inch long, yellowish-white, 
footless, much hke similar maggots, and distinguishable by the 
microscopic characters of the spiracles of the first and last seg- 
ments. The mature maggot goes just beneath the surface of the 
ground, where its skin hardens to a puparium in which the pupa 
is formed, in which stage the winter is passed. In barrels or 
storage places the maggots pupate beneath the apples, and 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 561 

occasionally a puparium is found in the burrow of the maggot 
within an apple. Most of the puparia are within 1 or 2 inches of 
the surface. There is but one generation a year. Some of the 
pupse do not emerge the next spring but remain dormant for an 
entire year in addition to the usual hibernating period, so if all 
the active individuals were killed one year there would still be 
emerging adults the following spring. 

Control. — As most of the affected fruit drops to tJie ground, 
during summer it should be picked up twice a week and destroyed 
before the maggots have left it to pupate. Where this is carefully 
done injury by the pest is greatly reduced. Particular attention 
should be given to the destruction of infested summer apples. 
Hogs pastured in the orchard will do this work admirably, and 
where there are but a few trees on bare or cultivated ground 
chickens will destroy the larvae. Plowing the orchard deeply 
as early as feasible in spring and keeping it well cultivated in early 
summer will bury the puparia so as greatly to lessen injury, which 
is always worse in uncultivated sod orchards. Poisoned syrups, 
sprayed onto the trees to attract the flies, have given good 
protection from the maggot but have scorched foliage on account 
of the use in them of a soluble form of arsenic. This method 
of treatment must be considered as still in the experimental stage. 

The Apple Curculio * 
The apple curcuUo has been commonly confused with the plum 




" a 

Fig. 498. — The apple curculio (Anthovomus quadrigibhus Say): a, b, adult 
beetles; c, larva; d, pupa — all enlarged. (After Riley.) 

curcuho, but is by no means as common or injurious, and is 

quite distinct in both appearance and habits. The adult beetle 

* Anthonomus quadrigibhus Say. Family Curculionidce. See C. S. 
Crandall, Bulletin 98, 111. Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 514; F. E. Brooks, Bulletin 126, 
W. Va. Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 113. 



562 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



>»-" 




is about the same size as the plum curculio, but more reddish- 
brown in color, the abdomen is more robust, and the wing-covers 
bear four prominent humps, the anterior being much larger than 
those on the plum curculio. The snout of the apple curculio is 

as long as the rest of the body 
and is held straight forward from 
the head, instead of hanging 
down as does the snout of the 
plum curcuHo. The work of the 
apple curcuho is also different 
in that after laying the egg in a 
small cavity in the fruit, on 
crescent-shaped mark is made 
around it. The apple curculio is 
a native species which breeds 
in wild haw, wild crab, and 
wild cherry, and has been reared 
in plum, quince and pear. 
"It has been reported from 
Connecticut and Ontario south to 
North Carolina and westward as 
far as New Mexico. It seems 
to have been more troublesome 
in Missouri, Illinois and other 
mid-western States than else- 
where," but has never done any- 
thing like the injury due to the 
plum curcuho and can hardly be 
regarded as a serious pest. 

Life History. — The beetles 

commence laying eggs in the 

punctures from the surface and in fruit SOOn after the blossoms drop 

section. (After C. S. Crandall.) , , . ^ • j r • j. 

^ ' and contmue for a period of sixty 

days, an individual female laying about 65 eggs. The eggs 

hatch in about five days and the larvse feed on the flesh of the 

apple for about twenty days, when they transform to pupae within 

the fruit. A week later the beetles emerge, but feed very Httle during 

the late summer before they enter hibernation for the winter. 

most of them leaving the trees by the latter part of August. 




Fig. 499. — Work of the apple curcuho; 
a, a', c, c', feeding punctures from 
the surface and in section; b, b', egg 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 563 

The larva is a footless, whitish grub a half inch long when full 
grown with a hump-backed appearance due to the enlargement 
of the anterior abdominal segments, which prevents the larva 
from straightening out. The beetles injure the fruit by puncturing 
it for feeding and for the deposition of eggs, causing it to become 
dimpled and gnarled as does the plum curculio, and the larvae feed 
within the fruit, mining the flesh, in which they undergo their 
complete development. 

Control. — Thickets of wild crab or hawthorn trees should be 
destroyed wherever near an orchard, for the beetles will breed in 
their fruit and then migrate to the orchard. Jarring as for the 
plum curculio may be practiced on young trees, and spraying as 
for that species will doubtless largely reduce the injury. Usually 
this insect is not sufficiently injurious to warrant special treatment 
where its native food-plants are not overabundant near the 
orchard. 

The Pear Leaf Blister-mite * 

The pear leaf blister-mite has long been known as a pest of pear 
foliage wherever the pear is grown, and has similarly affected apple 
fohage in Europe, but only in recent years has it become a. serious 
pest of apple fohage in New York, New England, Ontario and 
Pennsylvania. Just why it should suddenly become an apple 
pest after having occurred in this country for years without 
noticeably injuring it is a mystery, though dry seasons may 
possibly be accountable for it. 

The work of the mites is recognized by reddish bhsters forming 
on the young fohage, which later turn blackish and have a corky 
texture. Badly affected leaves drop, so that a tree is often largely 
defohated, and where the mites are abundant they attack the 
young fruit. 

The mites are not true insects, as they belong to the same class 
as the spiders, scorpions, and ticks. One of the more common 
larger mites is the red spider of greenhouses, which affects flower- 
ing plants, vegetable crops, and fruits of all sorts. These little 
bhster-mites are of microscopic size, only 1-100 to 1-200 inch in 
length, so that they can be seen only with a lens, and must be 

* Eriophyes pyri Pgst. Class Arachnida. Order Acarina. Family 
Eriophyida;, with which are associated several nearly related species with 
similar habits. See Parrott, Hodgkiss and Schoene, Bulletins 283 and 306, 
N. Y. Agr. Exp. Sta. 



564 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

examined with a compound microscope to distinguish the species. 
One is shown much magnified in Fig. 500. They are elongate, 
with two pairs of legs, and slender abdomens, composed of 50 
to 80 small rings, frequently marked with rows of small tubercles 
and ornamented with a few hairs and bristles. 

Life History. — The mites spend the winter in the buds, and 
as warm weather approaches in the spring they become active 
and move toward the base of the growing bud scales and feed 
there. As the young leaves unfold the mites migrate to them. 
They burrow through the surface of the leaf and feed upon the 
succulent tissue within, setting up an irritation which soon results 
in reddish spots on the surface. Within these mines the eggs 
are laid, as many as 14 having been found in a single blister. 
The young hatch in about a week and burrow around in all 




Fig. 500. — The pear leaf blister-mite {Erio-phyes pyri Pgst.): highly magni- 
fied. (After Parrott.) 

directions, feeding on the tissues and juices. When full grown 
they leave the gall through small openings in the under surface 
and start new colonies which produce similar galls. They con- 
tinue to reproduce and migrate throughout the summer, and under 
favorable conditions become numerous enough to completely 
infest the new leaves as they appear. In the fall they leave the 
leaves to hibernate in the buds as already described. 

On pear the blisters are at first greenish pimples, which become 
reddish and later brilliant red blisters, and finally they become 
brown or black and the tissue corky. When numerous the 
galls coalesce, forming dark brown patches over the leaf, which 
often break open, particularly along the edges of the leaves. 
On the blossom ends of the fruit and on the stems they produce 
light-colored pimples, which do not seem to injure the fruit. 
On apple the blisters are less brilliantly colored than on pear, 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 



565 



and become a light brown or dark green color on the upper leaf 
surface and uniformly brown beneath, looking something like 
the work of the apple rust. The young fruit is sometimes attacked, 
on which small green pimples, which later make blister-like spots 
or pock marks, are made toward the blossom ends, but which 
do not seem to cause much damage. 




Fig. 5U1. — Old leaf cluster with galls of pear leaf blister-mite on apple fruit 
and leaves. (After Parrott, Hodgkiss and Schoene.) 

Control. — The mites may be controlled by spraying with 
10 per cent kerosene emulsion, miscible oils, or lime-sulfur wash 
used the same as for the San Jose scale. Spraying should be 
done in October or November as soon as possible after a majority 
of the leaves have fallen, as many of the mites are still in the 
pubescence of the young wood, where they are more easily de- 



566 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

stroyed than when under the bud scales. In spring spray just 
as the buds begin to break and show the tips of the young leaves; 
spraying later than this will injure the foliage, and earlier spraying 
is not as effective. By using lime-sulfur in the spring, the usual 
treatment with Bordeaux mixture for diseases at that time is 
rendered unnecessary. Where infestation is serious both fall and 
spring sprayings should be given; otherwise the fall spraying is the 
better. The buds and new growth should be thoroughly drenched, 
while the rough bark of the trunk and old limbs may be neglected 
as far as the mites are concerned. Where pear trees are but 
sUghtly infested, the spread of the pest may often be prevented 
by simply pruning out and burning the infested twigs upon the 
first appearance of injury. 

The Pear Psylla * 

Where the pear psylla is abundant, pear growers have come 
to fear it next to the San Jose scale, and until recently owners 






Fig. 502. — ^The pear psylla (Psylla pyricola Foerst): adult, full-grown nympji 
and egg — all greatly enlarged in different proportions. (After Slinger- 
land.) 

in eastern New York became so discouraged in their attempt to 

control it that orchards were cut down. It is an old European 

pest and was first noted in Connecticut in 1832, since when it has 

spread southward to Maryland and Virginia and westward to 

Michigan and IlHnois, in which States it has done considerable 

injury. The psyllas are nearly related to the plant-hce and are 

* Psylla pyricola Foerst. Family Pstjllidce. See M. V. Slingerland, 
Bulletins 44 and 108, Cornell Univ. Agr. E.xp. Sta. ; C. L. Marlatt, Circular 
7, Div. Ent., U. S. Dept. Agr. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 567 

sometimes called jumping plant-lice, on account of the habit of 
the adults of giving a quick jump and flying from the foliage 
when disturbed. Like the plant-lice they reproduce very rapidly 
and suck the juices from the foliage and fruit. Usually the first 
indication of the pest is the prescence of large quantities of honey- 
dew, secreted by the njmiphs, with which the foliage becomes 
covered, and which attracts numerous ants. When the psyllas 
are numerous the leaves and fruit become coated with this sticky 
substance and it even drops from them like rain and runs down 
the trunk. A blackish fungus grows on the honey-dew and is 
always a good indication of the presence of the psylla. 

Badly infested trees are so injured by loss of sap that they 
shed their leaves in midsummer, the lower ones being the first 
to turn yellow and drop. The young fruit also drops from badly 
infested trees, which make but httle growth, as the young shoots 
are often attacked and wither early in the season. 

The adult psylla is about one-tenth inch long, of a reddish- 
crimson color with brownish-black markings, bronzy eyes and 
dark wing-veins, looking very much hke a miniature cicada or 
dog-day harvest-fly. 

Life History. — The adults hibernate over winter in crevices 
of the bark and there lay their eggs late in April or early May 
on the twigs or around the buds. The egg is about one-eighteenth 
inch long, hardly perceptible without a lens, and orange-yellow 
in color. It is pear-shaped with the small end drawn out into 
a long thread, and the larger end is attached to the bark by a 
short stalk (Fig. 502). The later generations deposit the eggs 
on the leaves often in rows or bunches. The eggs hatch in two 
to three weeks and the young nymphs feed on the leaf petioles 
in the axils of the leaves and later on the leaves, young fruit and 
tender shoots, from which they suck the sap. The nymph is a 
peculiar-looking little bug, broadly oval, flattened, of a yellowish 
color, with crimson eyes, but later becomes reddish with black 
markings and conspicuous black wing-pads, as shown in Fig. 502. 
They move very slowly and are frequently quite covered by their 
own honey-dew. After molting some four or five times, they 
finally transform to adults in about a month. According to 
Slingerland there are four generations in New York and probably 
five in Maryland. 



568 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Control. — As the adults hibernate over winter in the bark 
the treatment advised for the pear leaf blister-mite furnishes the 
best means of control for the psylla, and winter treatment is 
absolutely essential for its successful control. Otherwise, the 
best time to spray is in the spring just after the eggs have hatched 
and before the nymphs have secreted much honey-dew. If 
winter or spring spraying has been neglected, the trees should be 
thoroughly sprayed with "Black-leaf 40" one to 1000 with soap 
added. Spraying should be done after a shower, which will wash 

much of the honey-dew off, 
as the chief difficulty in sum- 
mer spraying is to reach the 
nymphs through the thick 
coating of honey-dew with 
which they are covered. Ob- 
viously the spray should be 
apphed with considerable 
pressure in a coarse spray. 

The Pear Thrips* 

The pear thrips has been 
known as an enemy of pears, 
plums, prunes, cherries and 
other plants in California 
since 1904 and within the 
last decade has been reported 
from New York, Pennsyl- 
vania, New Jersey and Mary- 
land. It feeds on fruits. 
Fig. 503. The Pear Thrips {Tmniothrips ^^^jg flowers and leaves and 
Pyn Daniel). — 1. — Adult. 2.— Eggs. ' . . 

3.— First-stage larva. 4.— Full-grown causes mjury aggregatmg at 
larva. 5.— Pupa first stage 6.— Pupa, jg^st a milhon dollars an- 
last stage. 7. — bide view of head show- . ^ ,./• • mi 

ing mouth parts. All greatly enlarged, nually m Cahtornia. Ihe 
(After Fosterand Jones, I.e.) insect is not markedly dif- 

ferent, to the casual observer, from the several other species of 
thrips discussed elsewhere in this volume. Adults appear on the 
fruit buds early in the spring and lay their eggs on fruit and leaf 

* Tceniothrips pyri Daniel. Family Thripidoe. See Foster and Jones, 
Bulletin 173, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. 




The Pear Thrips (Taemiothr. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 569 

stems and young fruit, feeding at the same time on growing parts 
of the plant. Injury by the adults is generally to the fruit buds 
before blossoming. The young forms feed on fohage and fruit 
and cause the defacement of fruit called fruit scab which greatly 
reduces the quality, especially of prunes which are the greatest 
sufferers. They remain inactive as fully grown njrmphs from 
early summer until the following spring when the adults again 
appear. 

Control. — Since the insect spends a large part of the year in 
the soil in immature stages thorough cultivation throughout the 
summer may be expected to destroy large numbers. Spraying 
has not given entire satisfaction, but distillate oil emulsions are 
largely used in Cahfornia. These are made by mixing 30 pounds 
fish oil soap, twenty gallons distillate oil and twelve gallons of hot 
water, by pumping them together under high pressure through a 
spray outfit into the tank. This is stock solution and should be 
diluted at the rate of one to twenty. To this should be added 
Black-leaf 40, about one-half pint to 100 gallons of the spray. 
This is applied at the time the buds are bursting and may be 
repeated after the petals fall. Spraying with thick whitewash 
gives some control but the first solution is preferred. Any spray- 
ing treatment should be supplemented by hberal fertihzation. 

The Pear Slug * 

Not infrequently the foliage of pear and cherry, and occasion- 
ally of plum trees turns brown in midsummer, which is found to be 
due to small, shmy, slug-hke larvse which have eaten off the surfaces 
of the leaves. The Pear Slug is a common pest throughout the 
country, having been known here for over a century. It is an 
old European pest and has become distributed to many of the 
British colonies in various parts of the world. The parent insect 
is a small saw-fly, about one-fifth inch long, glossy black, with 
four wings w^hich are iridescent, with a smoky band across the 
middle, and which are folded over the back when at rest. 

Life History. — The flies are abroad by the time the foliage is 

well out, by the middle of April in Maryland and late May or early 

June in New England. Like most of the saw-flies the female is 

* Caliroa cerasi Linnaeus. Family TenthredinidcB. See C. L. Marlatt, 
Circular 26, Div. Ent., U. S. Dept. Agr., and R. L. Webster, Bulletin 130, Iowa 
Agr. Expt. Station. 



570 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



furnished with a strong ovipositor with saw4ike teeth at the 
tip, with which she cuts a little blister-like cell beneath the upper 
surface of the leaf, in which the egg is deposited, as shown in Fig. 
505. The egg hatches in about two weeks and the little larva 
makes its way out of the cell through a crescent-shaped cut. 

The young larva is at first nearly white, except the yellowish- 
brown head, but very soon a slimy or gluey olive-colored Hquid 

exudes from over the 
entire body, giving it 
the appearance of a min- 
ute slug, from which it 
gets its name. The head 
is now dark brown, ap- 
pearing almost black 
under the slime, and 
the body is also darker. 
The anterior segments 
are much swollen, con- 
cealing the head and the 
thoracic legs. The ab- 
domen is furnished with 
seven pairs of prolegs, 
the usual pair on the 
segment being 




Fig. 504. — ^The pear slug (Caliroa cerasi Lin 

naeus.): a, adult female saw-fly; b, larva with ] g^ g -{^ 

slime removed ; c, same in norma state ; d, leaves ' . 

with larvae natural size; o, 6, c, much enlarged, wantmg so that the tip 

(After Marlatt, U. S. Dept. Agr.)— ^f ^j^g abdomen 



18 



slightly elevated. The Httle slugs commence eating out small bits 
of the upper surface of the leaf, which they gradually enlarge un- 
til nearly the whole upper surface is denuded, leaving merely a 
net work of veins, held together by the brown epidermis of the 
lower surface, which is nearly intact. Leaves thus injured turn 
brown, die and drop, so that a tree will sometimes be nearly def- 
oliated, except for the new growth which starts out. The larvse 
grow rapidly, becoming full grown in about twenty-five days, when 
they are about one-half inch long. When full grown the larva 
molts for the fifth time and loses its olive-green slimy appearance, 
becoming a light orange-yellow color, clean and dry, with a light- 
colored head marked by only the small circular black eye-spots 
on the sides. 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 571 

The larva now enters the ground for an inch or two, where 
it forms a small cell, which is moistened with saHva so that the 
walls become somewhat mipervious to water. In six or eight 
days it transforms to the pupa and in about two weeks after 
the larva entered the ground the adult fly digs its way out of 
the soil. Some of the larvae of each generation, and all of those 
of the last generation re- _ _ . ^^s^^^'^"^ 

main in the soil over 
winter and transform to 
pupae the next spring. ,y~- 
At Washington, D. C, the *' . / 

first generation of larvse ■|t';..' 
disappear by the end of ^^•'■' 
June and the second gene- ^.^ 

ration, which is probably ■sjsMmsfi-- ^^ , 

followed by a third gen- i^ -^^^ 

eration, is most abundant M 

in early July, when the 

•„,•„! • •„ , • j^ Fig. 505. — Illustrating method of oviposition 

prmcipal mjury is done. ^^^ emergence of the pear slug: a, cut- 
Farther north there are ting of cell beneath epidermis, showing the 
but two 0-PTiPr^tinn«! thp tip of the ovipositor; 6, the cell after the egg 
out two generations, tne has been deposited; c, same after escape of 
second appearing in the larva — all much enlarged. (After Mar- 
August. latt.U.S.Dept.Agr.) 

Control. — By spraying with any of the arsenicals when the 
work of the slugs is first noticed on the foliage they may be quickly 
destroyed. Whale-oil soap, or other soap, 1 pound to 4 gallons, 
will also destroy the larvae as a contact insecticide. Hellebore, 
air-slaked hme, or almost any finely divided dust, thoroughly 
dusted over the trees will also destroy most of the larvae, which 
are very readily killed. In gardens where water under pressure 
is available, the slugs may be washed off by a jet from a hose, 
as they are frequently washed off by heavy rains, and are much 
less injurious in wet seasons. 

The Tarnished Plant-bug * 

The tarnished plant-bug is one of the most common and 

troublesome plant-bugs throughout the country from Canada to 

* Lygus pratensis Linn. Family Capsidce. See Stedman, Bulletin 47, 
Missouri Agr. Exp. Sta., Crosby and Leonard, Bulletin 346, Cornell Univ. 
Agr. Expt. Station, and Leonard Haseman, Research Bulletin 29, Missouri 
Agr. Expt. Station. 



572 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Mexico. Seemingly it is nearly omnivorous, as it attacks almost 
all of the common garden crops, small fruits, tender shoots of fruit 
trees and young nursery trees, many flowering plants, and most of 
our common weeds. It is rather more important as an enemy 
of pears than on any other crop, causing deformation of the fruit 
to some extent every year in some of the important pear growing 
regions. At the same time it is quite as common as a garden pest, 
attacking a great variety of garden crops. Injury on pears 

by a bug of very simi- 
lar appearance is re- 
ported in New York. 
The bug most prevalent 
there is called the False 
Tarnishe^d Plant bug 
{Lygus invitus Say). 
Injury by the tarnished 
plant-bugs to peach has 
been blamed for a disease 
known as peach stop- 
back. Both nymphs and 
adults injure the plants 
by sucking out the juices, 
and on many plants a 
Fig. 506.— The tarnished plant-bug {Lygus small black spot appears 
pratensis Linn.) a, b, cd, four stages of where the insect has been 
nymphs: e, adult bug — all about four times 

natural size. (After Forbes and Chittenden, feedmg, which causes a 
U. S. Dept. Agr.) deformation of the stem 

or leaf, as in the ''buttoning" of strawberries, or tends to "blight" 
the terminal as in the case of dahhas, potatoes, and similar 
crops. 

The adult is nearly one-quarter inch long, of a brassy-brown 
color, marked with black and yellow, and the thorax with red. 
The color and markings are quite variable. The nymphs feed 
upon the same plants as the adults and pass through four stages, 
shown in Fig. 506. The first stage is only one-twentieth inch 
long and yellowish or yellowish-green. The second stage is 
about twice as large, and similarly colored, except that there are 
two pairs of dark spots on the thorax and one on the middle of the 
third abdominal segment, which grow more distinct in the last two 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE APPLE AND PEAR 573 

stages. With the third stage the small wing pads become visible 
and in the fourth stage they extend halfway down the abdomen. 

Life History. — The adults hibernate over winter under any 
shelter available, such as the trash on affected fields, under 
leaves, boards, stones, etc., and emerge in early spring. The 
eggs are laid in Missouri in April. But little is known of the 
places of oviposition, except that Taylor * has shown that some- 
times apples are severely dimpled by the egg punctures. It is 
evident, therefore, that the eggs are inserted in the stems or 
leaves of the food-plants. The pale yellow egg is about one- 
thirtieth inch long, oval, elongate, and flared at the outer end, so 
as to be somewhat bottle-shaped. The first generation becomes 
full grown in about a month, after which all stages may be found 
feeding together until September or October. In southern 
Missouri Professor Stedman states that there are three generations 
while in northern Missouri only two, but the exact number has 
not been carefully determined. 

Control. — This is is an exceedingly difficult insect to control, 
owing to the large number of food-plants and the fact that the 
adult takes wing and flies off quickly upon the least disturbance. 
As it sucks its food, arsenical insecticides are of course useless, 
and some contact insecticide must be used with which the insect 
may be hit. The nymphs may be sprayed at any time, but to 
hit the adult bugs they must be sprayed in early morning, while 
still sluggish. Spraying will be profitable where the njonphs 
are abundant, but it is doubtful whether it will be found a satis- 
factory means of combating the adults. Ten per cent kerosene 
emulsion and tobacco extracts have been used successfully. 
Where they are abundant the adults may be collected in consider- 
able numbers by sweeping the foliage in early morning with a 
strong insect net and then dropping them into kerosene. Clean 
culture, including the destruction of all weeds, and such vegeta- 
tion or trash as may furnish hibernating quarters, is important, 
as it is observed that injury is' always worse where weeds have 
been allowed to multiply and the ground has been covered with 
weeds and trash. 

* See E. P. Taylor, Journal of Economic Entomologj', Vol. I, p. 370. 



574 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCAHRD 

Haseman (1. c.) states that insecticides have been of little 
value in the control of the insect in nurseries and recommends 
that injury be prevented by destruction of the weeds which 
harbor it, particularly members of the Compositce of which the 
"Mare's tail" {Erigeron canadensis) is said to be the most 
important. 



CHAPTER XXVI. 

INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE PEACH, PLUM AND CHERRY * 

The Peach-tree Borer f 

Wherever peaches are grown they are subject to the attacks 
of the ever-present borers, and if neglected will soon succumb 
to their injury. East of the Rocky Mountains the common peach- 
tree borer has been known since the earliest settlements, and it 
also occurs in Colorado and Oregon. It is a native insect which 
probably lived on wild cherry and wild plum, and is known to 
attack plum, prune, apricot and nectarine, though chiefly a 
peach pest. On the Pacific Coast a nearly related species, the 
California peach-tree borer, J does similar injury and has very 
similar habits. The lesser peach-tree borer § is commonly asso- 
ciated with the more common borer and has done considerable 
injury in western New York, Maryland, Virginia and Georgia. 
It occurs throughout the country and is doubtless commonly 
confused with the larger and more common species. Although 
it is quite different in its Ufe history and habits, the injury is 
very similar, and as it must be controlled by the same methods 
it need not be separately considered. 

The presence of the borers may be detected by the mass of 
gummy, gelatinous material, more or less mixed with soil, which 
exudes from the crowns of trees injured by them. The injury 
is done by the larvae feeding on the soft inner bark of the crown 
of the root, the adjacent roots and the base of the trunk. Often 
the larvae will completely girdle a tree and where a tree is infested 

* See J. B. Smith, BuUetin 235, N. J. Agr. Exp. Sta. 

t Sanninoidea exitiosa Say. Family Sesiidoe. See Quaintance, Yearbook 
U. S. Dept. Agr., 1905, p. 330; M. V. Slingerland, Bulletin 176, Cornell Univ. 
Agr. Exp. Sta.; H. N. Starnes, Bulletin 73, Geo. Agr. Exp. Sta. 

t Sanninoidea opalesceris Hy. Ed. See C. W. Woodworth, Bulletin 143, 
Cal. Agr. Exp. Sta. 

§ Synanthedon pictipes G. & R. See A. A. Girault, Bulletin 68, Part IV, 
Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr., and J. L. lung. Bulletin 307, Ohio 
Agr. Expt. Station. 

575 



576 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



by several borers, the foliage turns yellow and if not treated will 
soon die. Such a tree is much more susceptible to the attacks 
of bark beetles and diseases. Probably as many peach trees 
are lost from the work of borers as from any other one pest, with 
the possible exception of the San Jose scale. 

The adults are clear-winged moths which fly during the day 
and might be readily mistaken for wasps. The females are a 
deep steel-blue with a broad orange band across the abdomen. 
The fore-wings are opaque, covered by the bluish scales, and 





<i^^ % 



Fig. 507. — Peach borer moths {Sanninoidea exitiosa Say) — natural size. 
The upper one and the one at right are females, the other two males. 
(After Slingerland.) 

expand about 1}4 inches, while the hind-wings are transparent 
except the dark margin. The males are smaller, with the wings 
clear except the margins and a line across the fore-wings, and 
the abdomen is marked with three or four narrow yellow stripes. 
Life History. — The moths emerge in New York and New Jersey 
from the middle of July to the latter part of August, at Wash- 
ington, D. C, from the middle of June until mid-September, 
the majority emerging in late July, while in Georgia the majority 
emerge in late August and early September. As there is but one 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO PEACH, PLUM AND CHERRY 577 






generation a year, the time of emergence in these different lati- 
tudes is decidedly anomalous when compared with the Hfe 
histories of other insects. The females soon lay their eggs, pre- 
ferring to place them on the base of the trunk, but often placing 
them higher, or even on weeds or trash, or on the soil. A 
single female may lay from 200 to 800 eggs. The eggs are 
about one-fiftieth inch long, and 
slightly over half as wide, truncate 
at one end, and a light chestnut-brown 
or reddish-brown in color, not easily 
seen on the bark of the tree. They 
hatch in about ten days and the 
young larvae at once seek out small 
cracks in the bark through which they 
enter the soft bark of the tree. Their 
presence may be easily detected by 
the powdery, brownish rass which they 
throw out of their burrows. The young 
larvae grow rapidly and continue feed- 
ing until forced into hibernation by 
cold weather, and in the South doubt- 
less feed during warm days in the 
winter. Feeding is resumed in the 
spring, the larvae boring through the 
lower layers of the bark and causing 
masses of gum to exude as already 
described. Larvae of almost all sizes 
may usually be found in late spring, and 
the resulting moths appear irregularly 
over a period of two to three months. The full-grown borer is a light 
yellowish larva about 1 inch long, with a brown head and thoracic 
legs, and five pairs of prolegs on the abdomen. The body is 
sparsely clothed with brownish hairs which arise from small, 
smooth tubercles. The grown larva constructs a cocoon at or 
near the surface of the ground, usually on the trunk near the 
burrow, but often on the soil, which is composed of particles 
of excrement and bark, bound together with gum and a thin 
lining of silk. In this it transforms to a brown pupa from which 
the moth emerges in about three weeks. 




Fig. 508. — Eggs of the 
peach borer: natural size 
at n; an egg greatly en- 
larged at I; and end of 
egg greatly magnified, 
showing micropyle at m. 
(After Slingerland.) 



578 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Control. — One of the best means of preventing injury and 
making the removal of the borers easier is to mound the soil 
around the trunk as high as possible, just before the moths emerge 
in the summer. This forces them to lay their eggs high up on the 
trunk, where the little borers may later be readily found. In some 
way this mounding seems to prevent the establishment of the 
young larvae, as several experimenters have found that from half 
to three-fourths of the borers are kept out of the trees in this 
way. In the early fall the earth should be leveled down to facil- 
itate finding the little larvse. Oviposition on the lower trunk 
may also , be prevented by wrapping the trunk with building 
paper, or any heavy paper, which should extend well into the 
soil below and be tied tightly just below the crotch at the top. 




Fig. 509. — The peach borer larva, natural size and enlarged. (After 
Slingerland.) 

Such wrapping may be used to advantage with the mounding up of 
the earth and thus largely prevent oviposition. The wrappers 
should be applied before the moths appear and be removed in the 
early fall. Various washes composed of soaps, hme, glue, cement, 
carbolic acid, and various other ingredients have been commonly 
recommended and widely used for preventing the laying of the 
eggs and the entrance of the young larvae, but careful tests have 
failed to show their value. Doubtless this is due to the roughness 
of the bark of the peach, over which it is difficult to make a com- 
plete coating, and the little larvae will enter through the smallest 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO PEACH, PLUM AND CHERRY 579 




crevice. Some wash which would penetrate the burrows of the 
young larvae and destroy them, as does the avenarius carbolineum 
with the bark beetles, would seem to bo the most promising line 
of treatment, and some of the washes which have been extensively 
used by practical growers should be critically tested on a com- 
mercial scale. 

Preliminary experiments in West Virginia have given excellent 
results in the control of the borers by the application of soluble 
oils of the commercial brands, 
at dilutions of from one to 
twelve to one to nine. The 
soil is scraped away from the 
base of the tree, the crown and 
lower part of the trunk 
thoroughly drenched with the 
oil, applied with a sprayer, and 
the soil drawn back into place 
about the tree. 

Mechanical protectors have 
generally proven to be of little 
value and in common orchard 
practice the growers still de- 
pend very largely on the old 
fashioned method of "worm- 
ing," that is, removing the 
borers from the trees by hand. 
This may be done in the 
spring or in the fall. Profes- 
sor Starnes recommends that, 
in Georgia, the work be done 
in the fall since many of the 
small borers are then in the 
surface bark and in masses of 




^■■'i' 



Fig. 510. — Work of a single peach 
borer, natural size: w, h, burrow of 
borer; g-, gummy mass; p, pupa project- 
ing from cocoon. (After Slingerland.) 



exuded gum and may be easily destroyed while in the spring they 
are found in better protected situations under the bark. In the 
North fall worming seems to be less satisfactory. Tools for worm- 
ing consist of a stout knife and a piece of steel wire, sharpened at 
one 2nd. Special knives with curved blades are sometimes prefer- 
red. Some use the ordinary pruning knife and some prefer a 
blade similar to that of the blacksmith's hook-knife. 



580 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



The Peach Twig-borer * 

On the Pacific Coast the Peach Twig-borer, often known there 
as the peach worm, is one of the most serious pests of the peach. 
In the Eastern States it has been injurious in Delaware, Virginia 
and Maryland, but only occasionally. Probably the insect occurs 
throughout the country wherever the peach is grown, as it is 
an old European insect which was first noticed in the United 
States in 1860. On the Pacific Coast the over-wintering larvae 
bore into the tender shoots in early spring and during the summer 

bore into the fruit, particularly 
the later varieties. Prune, 
nectarine, apricot, almond, 
and pear are also injured. 

The adult moth is a dark- 
gray color, with fore-wings ex- 
panding about one-half inch 
and marked with darker spots. 
The full grown larva is about 
one-half inch long, of a dull 
reddish-brown color with dark 
brown or blackish head. 

Life History. — "The insect 
passes the winter as a very 
small larva in silken-lined cells 
Fig. 511. — The peach twig-borer or burrows in the spongy 

(4narsm KneaJeZZa): adult moth with tissue of the bark at the 

wings spread and folded — much ,. , t i r-^>^ • 

enlarged. (After Marlatt, U. S. Crotches of the limbs. Their 

Dept. Agr.) presence is indicated by small 

mounds of comminuted bark, as shown in Fig. 512, at a and h. 

Early in the spring, as the foliage is putting out, the larvae begin 

to leave their burrows and attack the tender shoots, boring into 

and down the pith, the galleries ranging from about one-third inch 

to 1| inches in length. The shoot thus injured soon wilts and 

dies, as shown in Fig. 513, at a. Many shoots may be attacked by 

a single larva, which is thus capable of doing considerable harm. 

There are two or three generations of larvae during the summer in 

* Anarsia lineatella Zell. Family Gelechiidoe. See W. T. Clarke, Bulletin 
144, Cal. Agr. Exp. Sta.; C. L. Marlatt, Bulletin 10, n. s., Div. Ent., U. S. 
Dept. Agr.; A. L. Quaintance, Yearbook U. S. Dept. Agr., 1905, p. 344. 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO PEACH, PLUM AND CHERRY 581 




Fig. 512. — Peach twig-borer in winter 
quarters: a, twig, showing in crotch 
minute masses of chewed bark above 
larval chamber; h, same, much en- 
larged; c, larval cell enlarged; and 
d, larva very greatly enlarged. (After 
Marlatt, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



the West, those of the second and third attacking the fruit, the 
later varieties being the worst injured. According to Professor C. 
V. Piper, the larva enters the peach at the stem end, usually bor- 
ing into the pit, the seed of which 
it seems to prefer, usually caus- 
ing the stone to split as the fruit 
ripens; or simply the flesh may 
be tunnelled, depending on 
whether or not the stone is hard 
when the fruit is attacked. In 
California, according to Clarke, 
the larva usually enters the fruit 
along the suture at the stem 
end, and excavates a chamber 
beneath the skin, which black- 
ens and shrivels somewhat, af- 
fording entrance to organisms 
of decay. In the ripe fruit the 
larvae frequently make their way to and around the stone, which, if 
split, may be entered and the seed feed upon. . . . Early in the 

fall, about September 1, in 
CaUfornia, the very young 
larvae from eggs of the last 
generation of moths construct 
their hibernation cells in the 
soft tissue of the crotches of 
limbs, where they remain un- 
til the following spring, thus 
spending some six months in 
this condition." — Quaintance. 
Control. — By spraying dur- 
ing the winter, or preferably 
after the buds have swollen 
in the spring with kerosene 
or distillate-oil emulsion, the 
oil is absorbed by the cast- 
mgs at the mouth of the burrows of the hibernating larvae, and 
thus penetrates the burrows and kills the larvae. Lime-sulfur wash 




Fia 513. — ^The peach twig-borer: a, new 
shoot of peach withering from attacks 
ot larvae; h, larva enlarged; c, pupa, 
enlarged, (After Marlatt, U. S. Dept. 
Agr.) 



582 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

applied from the time the buds commence to swell until the 
first blossoms, has also been widely and successfully used. 
The wash should be appHed as late as possible before blossoming. 
Recently Mr. E. P. Taylor has shown * that in western Colorado 
the larvse are very readily killed by arsenate of lead, 3 to 5 pounds 
per barrel, applied just as the buds are beginning to open. The 
arsenate of lead must contain no soluble arsenic, or it may burn the 
foliage. This treatment is given at the same season as the lime- 
sulfur wash and is much easier to prepare and apply. 

The Peach-tree Bark-beetle f 

The peach-tree bark-beetle is very similar in both appearance 
and habits to the fruit-tree bark-beetle, and may be readily 
confused with it. It is a native insect which attacks only peach, 
cherry and wild cherry, and so far has been injurious only in 
western New York, northern Ohio, and the Niagara district 
of Ontario, though it occurs from New Hampshire to North 
Carolina and west to Michigan. 

"When the beetles are present in large numbers their injury 
to the tree is quickly brought to the attention of the orchardist 
by the large amount of sap exuding from the trees through the 
many small borings made both in the trunk and Hmbs of the 
tree. . . . The adults or beetles produce the primary injury to 
healthy trees, the work of the larvse being secondary. The healthy 
trees, by repeated attacks of the adults, are reduced to a condition 
favorable to the formation of egg-burrows. When the beetles 
are ready to hibernate in the fall they fly to the healthy trees and 
form their hibernation cells. These latter are injurious to the 
trees, for through each cell there will be a tiny flow of sap during 
the following season." When the beetles emerge in the spring 
they bore into the bark of healthy trees and later leave them to 
form egg burrows in sickly trees. From these numerous burrows 
the sap issues in large quantities and in many cases forms large 
gummy masses around the trees. After three or four years of 
such injury the tree is so weakened that the beetles form their 
egg burrows beneath the bark and the larvae soon finish its 

* E. P. Taylor, Bulletin 119, Colo. Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 8. 
t PhloEotribus liminaris Harris. Family Scolytidoe. See H. F. Wilson, 
Bulletin 68, Part IX, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO PEACH, PLUM AND CHERRY 583 



destruction. There are two generations a year, the summer brood 
appearing in the latter half of August and the other hibernating 
over winter. 

Control. — The same methods are advised as for the fruit-tree 
bark-beetle, which see. 

The Peach Lecanium * 

The presence of the "terrapin scale," as this species is often 
called, is usually indicated by the sooty appearance of the branches 
and foHage of affected trees. This is due to the fact that the 
scales excrete considerable honey-dew, which covers the bark and 




Fig. 514. — ^The peach lecanium or terrapin scale (Eulecanium nigrofasciatum 
Pergande): adults at left, natural size and much enlarged; young at 
right, and unfertihzed female at center — much enlarged. (After Howard, 
U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

leaves, and on which a sooty fungus propagates. It is a common 
species throughout the eastern United States and also attacks 
the apple, maple, sycamore, linden and birch, but is most injurious 
to peach and plum. The hibernating, partly grown, female scale 
found on the bark in winter, is about one-twelfth inch long, 
hemispherical, and of a reddish color mottled with radiating 
streaks of black, particularly about the margin. Sometimes 

* Euclecanium nigrofasciatum Pergande. Family Coccidoe. See J. G. 
Sanders, Circular 88, Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr.; A. L. Quain- 
tance. Yearbook U. S. Dept. Agr., 1905, p. 340; T. B. Symons and E. N. Cory, 
Bulletin 149, Md. Agr. Exp. Sta., and F. L. Simanton, Bulletin 351, U.S. 
Dept. Agr. 



684 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



these streaks coalesce and form a dark band around the center, 

while other individuals are occasionally entirely red or black. 

Frequently trees become badly encrusted with these scales, but 

rarely are they killed by them. The fruit on badly infested 

trees is, however, 
poorly developed, in- 
sipid, and covered 
with the sooty fungus 
so as to be almost 
unsaleable, and the 
trees are stunted and 
rendered more liable 
to the attack of other 
insects. 

Life History . — 
There is but one gen- 
eration a year. In 
the winter they are 
mostly nearly grown 
female scales. These 
mature early in the 
spring and deposit 
their eggs in a mass 
beneath the body, 
which forms the hard 
scale above them. In 
Missouri the eggs 
hatch about June 
10th, and continue to 
hatch for a month. 
The male scales are 
much smaller than 
Fig. 515.— The Peach Lecanium— enlarged. (After the females, elongate, 
Simanton.) slightly convex, and 

greenish-white in color. Late in July the winged males appear 
and live about a week. The young female scales continue growth 
during the summer and hibernate when about two-thirds grown. 
Control. — Lime sulphur seems to be ineffective against this 
insect but orchards which are sprayed year after year with it 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO PEACH, PLUM AND CHERRY 585 

suffer less than unsprayed ones. The best treatment for general 
use is miscible oil spraying. The oils to be used at about one to 
16 or 18 and applied in the spring after the buds swell but before 
they open. Two treatmenrs in successive years must be given to 




Fig. 516. — Distribution in the United States of the terrapin scale (Eulecan- 
ium nigrofasciatum) . (After Simanton, I.e.) 

get the full benefit and it is better, in infested regions, to make it 
an annual treatment. 

The Black Peach-aphis * 

The black peach-aphis is a native species which has been most 
injurious in the Middle Atlantic States, but has become widely 
distributed on nursery trees. It attacks the roots, tender shoots 
and foliage of the peach When occurring on the roots, trees are 
often seriously injured before its presence is suspected. Young 
trees are particularly affected, the injured trees having a yellowish 
sickly foliage. Usually, however, the presence of the aphids 
on the young shoots and leaves will be an indication of its inhab- 
iting the roots also. In the spring and early summer the aphids 
cluster on the tender shoots at the crotch of the tree and low 
down on the limbs and soon form a disgusting black mass over 
the young leaves, which are tightly curled up from the injury. 



586 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



On young trees in the nursery and on young orchard trees, this 
injury to the foliage is sometimes so severe as to kill or severely 
check the growth. 

Both winged and wingless aphids are found on the foUage, 
but only the wingless forms occur on the roots. Both forms are 
about one-twelfth inch long and shining deep brown or black 
in color when mature. The partly grown aphids, which form 
the larger part of most colonies, are reddish-yellow or amber 
colored. 

Life History. — The wingless aphids feed and reproduce upon 
the roots throughout the year, all being females and giving birth 





Fig. 517. — ^The black peach-aphis (Aphis persiccB-niger Er. Sm.): winged 
viviparous female; young female, first instar; apterous viviparous female — 
much enlarged. (After GUlette and Taylor.) 

to live young after the manner of the aphids. In the spring 

some of them migrate to the young foHage, often appearing on the 

tender twigs before the buds open. They multiply rapidly, and 

as a result of the hundreds of little beaks sucking out the juices 

the shoot soon withers, which causes the young to develop into 

winged aphids which migrate to other trees. Honey-dew is 

excreted very freely by the aphids, which are therefore attended 

by numerous ants which doubtless aid in their transportation 

from tree to tree and from the roots to the leaves and back. 

"During summer the aphids for the most part are to be found 

* Aphis persicce-niger Er. Sm. Family Aphididoe. See C. P. Gillette, 
Bulletin 133, Colo. Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 37; A. L. Quaintance, Journal of Eco- 
nomic Entomology, Vol. I, p. 308, Yearbook U. S. Dept. Agr., 1905, p. 342. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO PEACH, PLUM AND CHERRY 587 

on the roots, though a few may be found on the foliage and the 
shoots in badly infested orchards at almost any time during the 
growing season . . . Light sandy soils are worst infested, though 
they have been found in abundance on stiff clay soils. " (Quain- 
tance, I.e.). 

Control. — The roots of young trees suspected of being affected 
should be carefully examined and if aphids are found they should 
be dipped in strong tobacco water. Nurserjmien prevent injury 
by making liberal appHcations of tobacco dust in the trench and 
along the rows. Tobacco dust may also be used against the 
aphids on the roots of orchard trees by removing the surface 
soil and applying a liberal dressing of the dust, which will be 
leached down on to the roots by the rains. It should be applied 
over the smaller roots. The treatment for the root forms has 
not been sufficiently studied to warrant any conclusions as to 
satisfactory methods, but the same as advised for the woolly apple- 
aphis (p. 518) are suggested. When the aphids appear on the 
young shoots in the spring they may be readily controlled if the 
trees are observed for their appearance, for they are very grega- 
rious, clustering on one shoot until it is well covered before spread- 
ing to the rest of a tree, and becoming abundant on it before 
spreading to others. Often the small infested shoots may simply 
be broken off and destroyed. The aphids may be killed by 
spraying them with tobacco extract. 

The Green Peach-aphis * 

This aphid is a European species which has long been known 
as a pest of peach foliage in this country, where it has become 
widely distributed. Considerable interest attaches to the species, 
as it furnishes a striking example of the summer migration of 
aphids to different food-plants, and a consequent difference 
in appearance in form and color. During the summer this species 
feeds upon various vegetables and succulent plants, and is so 
different in color and form that it has been well known not only 
as a separate species, but as belonging to a distinct genus. Con- 
cerning its injury to the peach, E. P. Taylor states: " The 
peach-growers of Western Colorado have suffered loss from it, 
from its heavy infestation of the leaves of the trees in the spring, 



588 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

causing them to curl and drop prematurely to the ground, and 
from the withering and subsequent dropping of the buds and 
forming peaches also infested by the aphids at this time. " Similar 
injury has been reported from Missouri, and doubtless occurs 
occasionally in other sections. 

Life History. — The winter is usually passed in the egg stage 
on the peach, plum, apricot, nectarine, cherry or other trees, 
though the wingless females sometimes persist on the summer 
food-plants where there is sufficient protection to enable them to 
endure the cold of winter, as in cabbage pits, or in the South. The 
small, oval, shining black eggs are deposited in the axils of the 
buds or in crevices of the bark. "The eggs hatch very early 
in the spring so that the young stem-mothers from them are 
often almost fully grown before the earHest peach or plum blos- 
soms open. About the time the buds begin to open on these 
trees, the stem-mothers are all of a deep pink color and begin to 
give birth to living young. These young instead of being pink 
Uke their mothers are pale yellowish-green throughout their 
lives, and usually there is a median and two lateral dark green 
stripes passing over the abdomen. Very few of this brood attain 
wings. The third generation become very largely winged and 
begin leaving the trees upon which they were born about the mid- 
dle of May in the peach-growing sections of the State (Colorado). 
By the middle of June these lice have almost completely left the 
trees and may be found establishing their colonies upon various 
succulent vegetables." The winged females which migrate 
from the peach are about one-twelfth inch long, with a wing 
expanse of one-third inch. They are a yellowish-green color with 
head, antennae, thoracic lobes, honey-tubes, a large spot on the 
centre of the abdomen, and small lateral spots in front of the 
honey-tubes are blackish. The wingless females during the 
summer are pale yellowish and lack the longitudinal green stripes 
on the abdomen. According to Taylor's observations the 
spring generations on peach become full grown in about two 
weeks and an individual aphid Kves about a month. In the fall 

* Myzus persicce Sulz. Family Aphididoe. (Syn. — Rhopalosiphum dianthi 
Schr.). See Gillette and Taylor, Bulletin 133, Colo. Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 32; 
C. P. Gillette, Journal of Economic Entomology, Vol. I, p. 359; E. P. Taylor, 
ibid., p. 83; F. H. Chittenden, Bulletin 2, Va. Truck Exp. Sta., p. 30. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO PEACH, PLUM AND CHERRY 589 

winged females return to the peach and winter host-plants, and 
give birth to young which develop into wingless females which 
lay the winter eggs. The true males are winged and migrate 
from the summer food-plants. 

Control. — The trees affected should be sprayed about a week 




Fig. 518. — The green peach Aphis {Myzus persicce Sulz.) : 5, adult stem mother; 
6, young of stem mother; 7, apterous viviparous female of second genera- 
tion; 8, spring migrant; 9, fall migrant; 10, egg-laying female; 11, eggs — 
all much enlarged. (After Gillette and Taylor.) 

before the buds open with tobacco extract. If the trees are sprayed 
with lime-sulfur for the twig-borer just before blossoming, it 
should kill most of the aphids. Tobacco extract may be used on 
the foliage of affected plants as necessary. 



590 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

The Green Soldier Bug * 

The Green Soldier Bug has done serious injury to peaches 
in Ohio and West Virginia as well as other localities in recent years 
and is known as an important enemy of garden crops, particularly 
Lima beans. It " stings " the developing pods of the beans, sucks 
the sap from them and no beans develop. 

Its injury to peaches is done by sucking sap from the develop- 
ing fruits from the time they are half -grown until they ripen. 

The adult is one of our larger green stink-bugs of the common- 
stink-bug form and will be easily recognized from its name. 
The nymphs are darker in color, ranging from blackish to yellowish- 
green with black markings, depending upon the stage. The 
nymphs are more likely to be observed doing the damage than are 
the adults. 

This species is very similar to another southern form called 
the southern green plant-bugf, which injures fruits but is more 
important as a pest on truck crops. 

Control. — It is fortunate that this insect is held in check by 
climate and natural enemies since there are no artificial control 
measures available as yet. Hand picking, or jarring into cans 
of kerosene, might pay on a small scale in gardens. It appears 
that the insect may be expected to occur in injurious numbers 
only after mild winters and it is attacked by several parasites so 
its occurrence as a pest is only occasional. 

The Plum Gouger | 

This is a 'native beetle which breeds upon wild plums and is 
most injurious to native varieties. It is common throughout 
the Mississippi Valley, but seems to be most injurious westward 
and occurs in Colorado. The work of the beetles might be easily 
mistaken for that of the curcuHo (p. 505). The adult beetle is 
readily distinguished from the curcuUo, however, by lacking the 
humps on the wing-covers. 

* Nezara hilaris Say. See R. D. Whitmarsh, Bulletin 310, Ohio Expt. 
Station, and p. 236, Chapter XIII. 

t Nezara viridula L. See T. H. Jones, Bulletin 689, U. S. Dept. Agr., and 
J. R. Watson, Bulletin 134, Florida Expt. Sta., also page 630, Chapter XXVII. 

\ Coccotorus scutellaris Lee. Family Curculionidce. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO PEACH, PLUM AND CHERRY 591 




It is about one-quarter inch long, with a snout half as long, 
the wing-covers are a leaden-gray color, finely spotted with 
black and brown, while the 
thorax and head are marked 
with ochreous yellow. 

Life History. — Like the cur- 
culio, the beetles hibernate over 
winter and appear in the spring 
as the trees blossom. At first 
they puncture the calyx and feed 
on the ovary of the flower, com- 
pletely destroying it for fruit pro- 
duction, and then puncture the 
growing plums, both for food 
and for egg-laying. In feeding 
on the plums the adults gouge out 
small round holes, from which gum 
exudes. Like the curculios, they 
have the habit of feigning death 
and dropping to the ground when 
disturbed. The eggs are laid 
while the pit of the plum is still 
soft. The female beetle drills a small hole which is larger below, 
in the plum, and in it deposits a small yellowish-white egg, 
whose outer end lies flush with the surface of the plum. As soon 
as the larva hatches it eats its way into the pit, feeding upoji the 
meat of the seed until full grown. It then eats a hole through 
the outside of the pit so that the adult beetle may escape, and 
then transforms to a pupa. The larva is very similar to that of 
the curculio, but is a milky white rather than a glossy white and 
lacks the reddish tinge on the lower surface. Affected plums do 
not drop as when injured by the curcuHo. The pupal stage is 
passed in the pit of the plum and the adult beetle emerges through 
the hole cut for it by the larva. The beetles emerge a little before 
the plums ripen and often practically destroy them, as fruit badly 
punctured becomes gnarly and worthless. The beetles feed on the 
plums a short time and then seek hibernating quarters for the winter. 

Control. — Control measures have not been thoroughly tested, 
but where the beetles are abundant it would be well to try spray- 
ing with arsenate of lead as advised for the curculio. 



Fig. 519. — The plum gouger (Cocco- 
torus scutellaris Lee): a, plum 
stone showing exit hole of larva; 
b, adult; c, side view of head of 
beetle — enlarged. (After Riley 
and Howard, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 



592 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

Plum Aphids 

Three species of aphids are common on the plum foliage in 
spring and fall, and often do serious damage by curling up the 
foliage in the spring and causing it to drop prematurely, thus 
checking the growth of the tree and preventing proper fruiting. 
The life histories of the three species are very similar in that the 
eggs are laid upon the plum in the fall, upon which two or three 
generations develop in the spring, but in early summer they 
migrate to other food-plants, from which they return to the plum 
in the fall. The life history is much the same as that of the 
apple-aphis, and green peach-aphis, and need not be rehearsed 
in detail. 

The Mealy Plum-louse * 

This is a Ught-green species which is covered by a bluish- white 
mealy powder. It has a long narrow body, one-tenth inch long. 




Fig. 520. — ^The mealy plum louse (Hyalopterus arundinis Fab.) : a, young 
nymph; h, last stage of nymph of winged form; c, winged viviparous 
female — all much enlarged. (After Lowe.) 

marked with three longitudinal stripes of a darker green. The 

honey-tubes are short, thick, and slightly constricted at the base. 

The winged female is similar in coloration except that the abdomen 

bears several transverse triangular marks of darker green. In 

June the winged females migrate to certain grasses upon which 

the aphids reproduce during the summer, though small colonies 

* Hyalopterus arundinis Fab. Family Aphididoe. W. D. Hunter in 
Bulletin 60, Iowa Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 92, states that Aphis prunifolioe Fitch 
is probably the same species. Certainly H. arundinis and pruni, Aphis 
pruni and prunifolice, seem to have been applied to the same species in the 
economic literature in America. See Lowe, V. L., Bulletin 139, N. Y. Agr. 
Exp. Sta.. p. 657, and W. M. Davidson, Bulletin 774, U. S. Dept. Agr. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO PEACH, PLUM AND CHERRY 593 

are to be found on the plum throughout the summer. In the 
fall they return to the plum, where the winter eggs are laid. This 
species is known to occur in Germany, England, Australia, and 




Fig. 521. — Mealy plum aphides clustered on leaf. (After Lowe.) 
New Zealand, and seems to be widely distributed over the United 
States. It occurs here on plum and prune and in Europe is said 
to infest grape, peach, apricot, and nectarine, according to Lowe. 

The Hop Plant-louse * 

This species is best known as a pest of hops during the summer 
and rarely does very serious damage to the plum, though often 
quite abundant on it. The wingless aphids are light green or 
yellowish green without any noticeable markings. The winged 
forms have the same body color, with the head, thoracic lobes, 
and a few dashes on the abdomen, black. The species may be 
readily distinguished by the prominent tubercle which projects 
from the head on the inside of the base of each antenna, and a 
less prominent tubercle on the basal segment of each antenna. 
According to the studies of Dr. C. V. Riley and his assistants, 
the third generation in the spring migrates from the plum to 
hops in late spring and in fall winged viviparous females give 
birth to a few young which develop into egg-laying females which 

* Phorodon humuli Schrank. Family AphididcE. See C. V. Riley, Report 
U. S. Dept. Agr., 1888, p. 93; W. T. Clarke, Bulletin 160, Cal. Agr.Exp. Sta. 



594 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

mate with winged males which have developed on hops, the 
winter eggs being laid on the plum and other species of Prunus. 
In California, Clarke has been miable to find any evidence of 
the species on plum or other vegetation outside of the hop yards, 
where he finds the true sexes occuring in the fall, but no evidence 
of eggs. Hops are often seriously damaged by being reduced in 
size and weight and from the loss in aroma due to the presence 
of the aphids in them. The species is of European origin, where 
it is a well-known enemy of hops, and has become widely dis- 
tributed in the United States and Canada. 

Control. — Where it oviposits on plum it may be best con- 
trolled by spraying as for the other plum aphids in the spring. 
After it becomes established on hops it may be controlled by 
spraying with "Black-leaf 40." 

The Rusty-brown Plum-louse * 

This species is readily distinguished from others common on 
plum and prune by the dark rusty-brown color, with the base 
of the antennae, tibise, and tail a contrasting white. This species 
has become a very serious pest to plum foliage in the South and 
Southwest, and we have observed serious injury in New Hamp- 
shire, so that it is evidently widely distributed. The aphids 
collect on the tender young twigs, which they stunt or kill, assemble 
on the under sides of the leaves, which become corrugated and 
curled from their attack, and when abundant they attack the 
blossoms and their stems and thus prevent the setting of fruit. 
In early summer the winged females migrate to various common 
grasses, such as fox-tail, red top, barnyard grass, crab grass, and 
others, upon which they breed during the summer, and from which 
the winged forms return to plum in the fall. They become 
darker in color late in the season and the wingless, egg-laying 
female is ahnost black, as is also the small winged male. 

Control. — The treatment advised for the apple-aphis (p. 537) 
will be effective for the three species above, while on the plum, 
and the spraying should be done early in the season before the 
aphids have become numerous and curled the foliage. 

* Aphis setarioe Thos. Family Aphididoe. See Gillette and Taylor, 
Bulletin 133, Colo. Agr. Exp. Sta., p. 41; C. E. Sanborn, Bulletin 88, Okla- 
homa Agr. Exp. Sta. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO PEACH, PLUM AND CHERRY 595 

The Black Cherry-louse * 

This species has long been known as a cherry pest in Europe 
and during the last fifty years has become generally distributed 
over the eastern United States, and occurs in Colorado. So far 
as known the cherry is the only food-plant. Dr. Weed was of 
the opinion that the aphids left the cherry during late July and 
migrated to some summer food-plant which he was unable to 
find, but observations by Gillette and Taylor in Colorado would 
indicate that they may remain on the cherry, but become so 
reduced in numbers by their natural enemies that only a few 
survive during midsummer, and these give rise to larger colonies 
in late summer and early fall. Both the winged and wmgless 
forms are deep shining black, the body is rather broad and flat, 




A2y J 



Fig. 522. — ^The black cherry-aphis (Myzus cerasi Fab ): 1, apterous vivip- 
arous female; 2, winged viviparous female — enlarged. (After Gillette 
and Taylor.) 

and the honey-tubes are unusually long and are cylindrical. 
Small winged males and wingless females occur on the foliage in 
the fall and the latter lay their eggs on the twigs about the buds. 
Like the black peach-aphis, this species has the habit of accumula- 
ting in large numbers on the smaller sprouts or limbs near the 
ground before spreading to the rest of the tree or other trees, so 
that prompt treatment when first observed will prevent general 
infestation. 

Control. — Spraying as for the apple-aphis (p. 537), will control 
the pest. 

* Myzus cerasi Fab. Family Aphididce. See C. M. Weed, Bulletin Ohio 
Agr. Exp. Sta., Tech. Ser., Vol. I, No. 2, p. Ill; C. P. Gillette, Journal of 
Economic Entomology, Vol. I, p. 362. 



596 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

The Cherry Fruit-fly f 

The cherry fruit-fly is a native insect whose maggot Hves in 
the flesh of the cherries, causing them to rot. It is very nearly 
related to the apple maggot (p. 559) which it very closely resembles 
in both appearance and Ufe history. Injury by it has been 
recorded in Massachusetts, New York, Ontario, Pennsylvania, 
District of Columbia, Michigan and Iowa, so that it is probably 
generally distributed over the northeastern States. Although 
its native food-plant is unknown it is probable that it lives on some 
wild sour cherry. As cherries are always more or less injured 




Fig. 523. — The cherry fruit-fly {Rhagoletis cingulata Loew.): a, fly; 6, maggot; 
c, anterior spiracles of same; d, puparium; e, posterior spiracular plates 
of pupa — all enlarged. (After Chittenden, U. S. Dept. Agr.) 

by the plum curculio, it is quite probable that injury by this 
maggot may have been attributed to the curculio and its 
identity passed unnoticed. Sour and subacid varieties, such as the 
Morello and Montmorency, are worst injured, but black cherries 
and indeed all varieties are more or less damaged. 

The fly is slightly smaller than that of the apple-maggot, being 
about one-sixth inch long with a wing expanse of three-eighths 
inch. The body is blackish, the head and legs are pale yellowish- 
brown, the sides of the thorax are marked with a longitudinal 

t Rhagoletis cingulata Loew. Family Trypetidce. See M. V. Slingerland, 
Bulletin 172, Cornell Univ. Agr. Exp. Sta.; F. H. Chittenden, Bulletin 44, 
Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Dept. Agr., p. 70, and J. F. Illingworth, Bulletin 
325, Cornell Agr. Expt. Station. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO PEACH, PLUM AND CHERRY 597 

yellow band, the abdominal segments are marked with whitish 
or pale brownish transverse bands, and the wings are crossed by 
four blackish bands. The maggot is about one-quarter inch 
long and is indistinguishable from the apple-maggot. 

Life History.— The eggs are deposited just under the skin 
of the cherry from June until August, or probably during the 
whole season of the fruit. The eggs hatch in a few days and the 
little maggots penetrate to the pits, feeding on the flesh and 
forming a rotting cavity very similar to that made by the grub of 
the curculio. But few of 
the affected cherries fall 
from the trees, and as 
they frequently show but 
little effect of the damage, 
the infested fruit may be 
marketed and the pest 
thus, spread. When full 
grown the maggots leave 
the cherries and form 
puparia just beneath the 
surface of the ground, or 
in the bottoms of baskets 
or in rubbish, wherever 
the affected fruit may be. Fig. 524. — Section of a cherry, enlarged to 
The flies commence to shmv the maggot of the cherry fruit-fly and 

nature oi its work. Ihe small ngures 
emerge from these puparia above show the maggot and parent fly nat- 
by the middle of June in "i"^l ^i^^- (^^^er Slingerland.) 

New York and are found during the summer months. 

Control. — There is but little evidence as to practical means of 
control. Deep plowing in spring should result in burying the 
puparia so deeply as to prevent the emergence of the flies. Culti- 
vation is evidently of Uttle value, as the pest occurs in well- 
cultivated orchards, so that shallow cultivation does not seem 
to affect the puparia. Chickens have been observed to destroy 
the puparia, and will doubtless prove as effective as against the 
apple-maggot where they can be confined beneath affected trees 
on cultivated soil. The destruction of all fruit, whether windfall 




598 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

or remaining on the tree will, of course, aid in control. Recently 
a nearly related fruit-fly has been successfully controlled in South 
Africa by spraying the foliage with arsenate of lead sweetened with 
treacle or brown sugar, thus attracting the flies which are poisoned 
by the arsenate, and this method is worthy of trial both for the 
cherry L uit-fly and apple-maggot. 



CHAPTER XXVII. 

SOME INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CITRUS FRUITS* 
Scale Insects f 

There are many scale insects injurious to citrus fruit. Possibly 
taken collectively they are the most important pests of this class of 
fruit. Their importance is due in part to difficulties encountered 
in control which do not operate in the control of scale insects on 
deciduous trees. Dormant sprays, the main dependence for scale 
control on the latter group of plants, are not available for use 
against citrus scales. It will not be feasible to discuss all the im- 
portant scales in detail here but the two natural groups, the 
armored scales and the unarmored scales, will be discussed 
separately. 

Armored Scales f 

There are several armored scales which are important pests of 
citrus trees. Of these the most destructive is probably the Purple 
Scale § present in Florida and the other Gulf States and in Cahfor- 
nia. 

This scale resembles the common oyster-shell scale of the 
Southern States. It is found for the most part on citrus fruits and 
is of world-wide distribution. It attacks leaves, twigs and fruit 
and is often seen on fruit in northern markets. 

The Cahfornia Red Scale or Orange Scaled is more important in 

*See H. J. Quayle, Bulletin 214, California Exp. Sta.; J. R. Watson, 
Bulletin 148, Florida Exp. Sta.; W. W. Yothers, Farmers' Bulletin 933, 
U. S. Dept. Agr.; C. E. Wilson, Quarterly Bulletin, State Plant Board of 
Florida, Vol. II, No. 1, and various bulletins from the Florida Agr. Exp. 
Sta., The State Plant Board of Florida, The California Agr. Exp. Sta., The 
California State Commission of Horticulture and the U. S. Dept. of Agr. 

t Family Coccidcr. See list of publications given above and special bul- 
letins mentioned in connection with the different scales. 

X See previous reference. 

§ Lepidosaphes beckii Newman, See H. J. Quayle, Bulletin 226 California 
Agr. Exp. Sta. 

If Chrysomphalus aurantii Mask. See H. J. Quayle, Bulletin 222, California 
Agr. Exp. Sta. 

599 



600 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

California than in Florida, but is present in Florida. It is said to 
be second only to the black-scale as a pest in California. Adults 
of this scale are circular, of reddish color and about the size of an 
ordinary pin-head. There are several generations in the course of 
the year but these overlap so that young may be found through all 
the season. The young, like those of the San Jose scale are pro- 




FiG. 525. — Purple Scale on lemon. 
duced alive and not hatched from eggs as is usually the case with 
scales. 

This scale attacks trunk, branches, foliage and fruit and in- 
jures the tree by sucking the juices from it. It also injures the 
appearance of the fruit upon which it may sometimes be seen in 
the market. 

The Yellow Scale * is a variety of the California Red Scale and 
differs from it in its lighter color and slightly different distribution. 

* C. aurantii var. citrinus Coq. 



INSECTS INJURIOTJS TO CITRUS FRUITS 



601 



The Long Scale * is one of some importance in Florida, but is 
not reported from California as a pest. It is similar in habits and 
distribution on the plant to the Purple Scale, being often found on 
the fruit with that scale, but it may be distinguished by its narrower 




Fig- 526.— The Chaff Scale on lemon. 

shape. Being about the same length as the purple scale it is mach 

narrower. They are not always distinguished by the growers. 

A scale often associated with the red and yellow scales and 

similar to them except in color, which is more of a Ught gray, is the 

Greedy Scale f. Its main injury is in disfiguring the fruit for 

market as it rarely interferes seriously with the growth of the tree 

* Lepidosaphes gloverii Pack. See Watson, l.c 
t Aspidiotus camelliae Sign (or rapax Comstock) . 



602 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

Similar to it is the Oleander Scale * which, on account of its fre- 
quent occurrence on lemons is sometimes called the lemon-peel 
scale. The two latter forms are common in Cahfornia, but not 
known to infest citrus in Florida. The San Jose scale (see page 
470) is a pest in both localities, but does not do as much damage to 
the citrus fruits as it does to the deciduous kinds, being largely 
over-shaflowed by the other scales mentioned. 

In Florida the most destructive scale is the Florida Red Scale 
or Round Scale f. It lacks importance from the fact that it is not 
so widely distributed as some of the others and does not seem to 
spread so rapidly or to be as generally present in an infested plant- 
ing. This scale is reddish brown in color with a lighter brown 
center and is nearly circular. It infests the leaves and fruit and 
will easily defoliate a tree when it is abundant. 

The Chaff Scale J, a thin gray form, sometimes completely 
covers the bark of trees in Florida, especially the bark of the 
smaller branches. The Snow Scale, § so called on account of the 
white color of the males, is closely related to the scurfy scale of the 
apple. Neither the Chaff Scale nor the Snow Scale is seriously 
injurious. 

The Unarmored Scales 

Members of this group lack the separable scale found in the 
previous group of scales, the protection to the body being provided 
by a thickened and sometimes hardened body-wall rather than by 
a secretion from the body wall. They are generally larger than the 
armored scales and are much thicker bodied, their shape suggesting 
that of the common terrapin, on which account several species 
receive local names of terrapin-scale or tortoise-scale. 

The Black Scale If is the most important of the scale insects in 
California, being, according to Quayle, the most destructive of the 
insects attacking citrus fruits in that state. It occurs in Florida 
but rarely attacks citrus plants there, being more common on 
oleander and other trees. Its injury is due not so much to its feed- 
ing habits as to the secretion by the scales of a substance resembhng 

* A. hederae Comstock. 
t Chrysomphalus aonidum L. 
X Parlatoria pergandii Comstock. 

^Chionaspis citri Comstock. ^ ,., . « 

*\Saissetia olece Bern. See H. J. Quayle, Bulletin 223 California Agr. 
Exp. Sta. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CITRUS FRUITS 603 

the honey-dew of plant Hce which promotes the growth of a black 

fungus, known as the sooty-mold fungus, on the leaves and fruit, 

and makes it necessary to wash the fruit. Washing the fruit 
involves great loss due in part to the cost of the washing, but more 
to the infection of the fruit with molds through abrasions in the 
skin made in the process. The 

sooty-mold fungus on the leaves, al- ^^^^^^ 

though it lives from the honey-dew *S^^^H 

and not the leaf, interferes with the ^^IHi 

growth of the leaf by forming a JtojL 

dense coating over it. This is in- ^^V 

jurious to the leaf and to the tree. J^m 

The Black Scale is large, from one- W^^k 

eight inch to one-fourth inch long, ^^|^ 

more or less hemispherical in shape, ^^BP ' 

and somewhat wrinkled or ridged m^t^ 

on the surface. The hfe cycle re- ^^^^ 

quires several months but eggs are wBi 

produced over long periods and in ^^EU^ ^^^ 

great numbers, as many as 3000 ^^^^ ^^ 

from one female, so there appears to ^^^^ 

be one more or less continuous gen- ^^m 

eration. 1[^H 

The Soft Brown Scale,* some- ■■ 

times called the Turtle Back Scale .^Ik 

is similar to the one just discussed ^^v 

but smaller, of a brown color and ^^B 

lacking the darker markings of the ■■ 

Black Scale. It is occasionally Fig. 527.— Black Scale (-Samefea . 
locally injurious in the citrus fruit <^^^^ Bern.), 

region and is present over a large part of the country, attacking 
a variety of plants. Its injury in citrus groves is due to the honey- 
dew and consequent growth of sooty-mold fungus. The adult 
scales are somewhat more than one-eighth inch long and the shape 
is less nearly hemispherical. The young are produced alive, eggs 
being hatched within the body of the insect, and the young attack, 
by preference, the young growth. There are three or four broods. 
* Coccus hesperidum L. 



604 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



The Hemispherical Scale * is essentially a greenhouse pest, 
being found on ornamental plants of many sorts in greenhouses. 
It has some importance as a pest in citrus plantings as it thrives 
outdoors in climates suitable for orange growth. It is of a rather 
uniform brown color, fairly large size and is rather smooth and 
polished on the surface. 

Other scales of this type are found on orange, lemon and other 
trees of this type but none of them is as important as the ones 

mentioned. In Flori- 
da, the Wax Scale 
{Ceroplastes floriden- 
sis Comstock) charac- 
terized by a thick 
covering of white 
wax, and two other 
species of the same 
genus, are frequently 
to be seen but rarely 
do serious damage. 

The Cottony Cush- 
ion Scale or Fluted 
Scalef is possibly the 
most famous of the 
scales attacking the 
citrus plants. While 
not so injurious now 
as formerly, it threat- 
ened, for some years 
after its introduction 
into CaHf ornia in 
1868, the very exist- 
ence of the citrus in- 
dustry. Other efforts 
to control it having 
failed, a search wasmade by agents of the Department of Agriculture 
at Washington, for its native home, in the hope of finding there 
some insect which fed habitually upon it and was capable of keep- 
ing it in check. In this search they were more successful than other 

* Saissetia hemispherica Targ. 
1 1 eery a purchasi Mask. 




Fig. 528. — Hemispherical scale, Saissetia hemis- 
phaerica. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CITRUS FRUITS 605 

agents have been in recent years in the search for similar enemies to 
other introduced insects for they found, in Australia, which appeared 
to be its original home, a lady-bug beetle which fed on this scale. 
Some of these beetles * were sent to California where they were 
reared and distributed to the infested groves and in a few years had 
reduced the scale to the status of an occasional pest and it is no longer 
feared, doing less damage normally 
now than several other species and 
being always easily reduced in num- 
bers by the distribution of the lady- 
bugs. 

The Cottony Cushion Scale is more 
nearly related to the mealy bugs than 
to the soft-scales, with which it is 
usually classed. It is brown in color 
and has some resemblance to the soft 
or unarmored scales. It takes its 
common name from the appearance of 
the females at egg-laying time when 
they produce underneath the posterior 
portion of the body a mass of cottony 
wax which is fluted or furrowed on the 
upper side and forms a dense cushion. 

In this cushion the eggs are laid. At ! 

this stage the scale is not unlike the i 

common cottony-maple scale of the ' 

east {Pulvinaria innumerahilis) . ^^ 

Recognition of this species is easy . ^Hki '■ 

on account of the appearance of the ^^^ 

females. Adults are found on the Fig. 529.— Cottony Cushion 
bark, but young are more Ukely to be Scale. 

on the foliage. There are three or four annual generations. 

The scale is generally distributed in CaHfornia, and is present 
in many localities in Florida. While the lady-bugs will control it, 
it is necessary to keep watch and see that they are present in 
infested groves. 

* Novius (Vedalia) cardinalis Muls. 






606 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



In Florida the State Plant Board collects, rears and distributes 
these lady-bugs, to the growers, a nominal charge being made for 
the service. The beetle is commonly called the Vedaha or the 
Austrahan lady-beetle. 

There is present in California another effective parasite of the 
Cottony Cushion Scale, a true fly, of the family Agromyzidcs 
(Gryptochaetum monophlcehi) . This was introduced from Australia 
the same time as the Vedalia beetle. 

Control of Scales in Citrus Groves 

Since the control measures employed for scale insects are 
essentially the same as those for the whitefly and the mealy-bugs 
discussion of them will be deferred and will follow the discussion of 
those insects. 

Mealy Bugs * 

Several species of mealy-bugs occur in citrus plantings as well 
as on truck and other crops in the South and on greenhouse plants 





-- • 4--fs#^ 


am 




M 


^^^ 




KUl 


i 




s 


^BK^^KW' '' 


€■: ^) 


_ .: . ' 


. .€? # .S^^^^ll 


ipm 


m 


ppp- 



Fig. 530. — Lemon infested with the common mealy-bug. 
After Woglum and Neuls. U. S. Dept. of Agr. 

and some outdoor ornamentals farther north. The most impor- 
tant of these is the Citrus Mealy-bug f and since they all have 
much the same habits and appearance they will all be treated 

* Family Coccidce, Sub-family DactylopiincB. 
t Pseudococcus citri Risso. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CITRUS FRUITS 607 

under this head. The mealy-bug is common in all citrus growing 
regions and is at times a serious pest. 

It attacks many plants, but prefers the citrus fruits. It is 
found on all the growing parts of the plants, but prefers sheltered 
situations as between the leaf-stem and the stem. It also gets into 
crevices in the bark and sometimes clusters on the stem end of the 
fruits and between fruits which are hanging against each other. 




Fig. 531. — A group of common mealy-bugs. Enlarged about 9 times. 
After Woglum and Neuls, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 

Mealy-bugs secrete a form of honey dew in which grows a black 
sooty-mold of fungus which disfigures the fruit and renders wash- 
ing, with its objectionable features, necessary. If not washed off 
the fruit they will remain on it after picking and continue to breed 
causing loss in transit or storage. 

The eggs are laid in a mass of cottony wax secreted by the 
females and the young are fairly active. The adults are never 
permanently attached to their food-plant as are the scales. They 
breed more or less continuously but there are several generations. 



608 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

They are likely to be more abundant in dry weather, spring and 
fall in Florida. 

The insect is resistant to sprays, being protected by its waxy 
covering and the young are also resistant to fumigation so that the 
insect is hard to control. It will however, yield to persistent 
treatment under the methods to be described. 

Mealy-bugs, Kke most of the other important citrus insects, are 
subject to the attacks of many kinds of parasitic and predaceous 
enemies which may, under favorable conditions, entirely eliminate 
the necessity for artificial control measures. It has been observed 
in California that the work of these enemies is interfered with by 
the Argentine ant * which drives away the parasites or destroys 
them in some stages. It is therefore frequently of advantage to 
protect the infested trees from these ants, either by banding with 
some substance which will keep them out of the trees, as sticky 
tree-tanglefoot, or by poisoning the ants. This is done quite 
successfully by the use of the following poison as recommended by 
Woglum and Neuls f from whom the following directions are quoted : 

" To free trees of ants the ideal procedure would be to eradicate 
these insects from the area affected. The writers have not carried 
on any such tests, but the published results of work carried on by 
the Department of Agriculture against the Argentine ant | would 
indicate the feasibility of freeing orchards of this pest. 

The procedure followed with noteworthy success in municipal 
control work was the distribution throughout the affected area of 
a poisoned sirup in a suitable container. A paraffined paper bag, 
with perforations for the passing of ants, containing about a gill 
of sirup, was used as a container for naihng to trees." 

" The sirup is made as follows: 

Granulated sugar pounds — 15 

Water pints— 7 

Tartaric acid (crystalHzed) ounce — 3^ 

Boil for 30 minutes. Allow to cool. 

Dissolve sodium arsenite (C. P.) ounce — ^ 

* Iridomyrmex humilis Mayr. 

t Woglum and Neuls, Farmers' Bulletin 862, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 

J Barber, E. R. The Argentine Ant: Distribution and Control in the 
United States, U. S. Dept. of Agr., Bui. 377, 23 p., 4 fig. 1916. Newell, 
Wilmon, and Barber, T. C. The Argentine Ant. U. S. Dept. of Agr., Bui. 
Ent. Bui. 122. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CITRUS FRUITS 609 

In hot water pint — 1 

Cool. Add poison solution to sirup and stir well. Add 
to the poisoned sirup: 

Honey pounds — 1}4 

Mix thoroughly. 

"A number of experiments with banding in orchards infested 
with the Argentine ant have proved the practicability of this method 
of keeping trees free of ants during their active season, and this 
method of control is recommended as the most effective one tried. 
Before the band is applied the tree should be pruned so that the 
lowest branch is fully a foot above the ground, and all rubbish 
should be removed from beneath the tree and the soil cultivated 
to destroy all grass and weeds. The only banding material which 
has given satisfaction is a mixture * made up as follows: 

Finely powdered flowers of sulphur . . . part by weight — 1 

Commercial tree-banding sticky material 

parts by weight — 6 

" The two ingredients are mixed together thoroughly with a 
wooden paddle until of a uniform color and consistency. That 
possible injury may be avoided, this is not applied directly to the 
bark, although direct application of the commercial sticky tree- 
banding matei'ial alone has never been noted in California to affect 
citrus trees seriously. First coat the trunk with a thin layer of 
paraffin and apply the mixture of sulphur and sticky tree-banding 
material over this. Paraffin that has a high melting point is 
preferable, and it is applied with a brush while melted. It hardens 
almost immediately, after which the mixture just referred to can 
be applied in a band about 5 inches wide and almost one-fourth 
inch thick. A single application of this material has kept trees 
free of ants for several months during warm weather. 

"Ants that are on trees at the time of banding usually drop off 

within a day or two unless nests are in the trunk or branches. If 

nests are present, however, they should be destroyed by applying 

pyrethrum or some other ant powder, or with a fine spray of gasoHne 

from a plumber's torch, or with cresolated emulsion applied with a 

*Compounded by Mr. J. R. Horton of the Bureau of Entomology, U. S. 
Department of Agriculture. (See Horton, J. R. Some weatherproof bands 
for use against ants. In Mo. Bui. Cal. State Com. Hort., v. 5, no. 11, p. 
419-421. 1916.) 



610 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



3-gallon compressed-air sprayer. This should be done early in the 

morning, while the ants are least active. 

" Inspection should be made weekly for the discovery of rein- 

f ested trees, the bands 
being renewed where 
necessary and the 
branches of the trees 
kept from coming in 
contact with weeds 
or the ground." 

Whiteflies* 

The whiteflies are 
the most important 
of the insects attack- 
ing citrus fruits under 
the conditions exist- 
ing in Florida but are 
not so serious in Cal- 
ifornia, as they are, 
as yet, present in that 
state in only one or 
two restricted locali- 
ties. Indications are 
that, once they are 
established, they will 
be as important there 
as in Florida. 

According to 

Watson (1. c.) there 

are eight species of 

Fig. 532 — Adults of the common white fly crowd- -whiteflies attacking 

ing the under surface of new orange leaves. . t ■ • 

Adults appear shghtly less than normal size. Citrus fruit S in 

(Morrill and Back.) U. S. Dept. of Agr. Florida. Two of 

these, the Common Whitefly f and the Cloudy- Winged Whiteflyl 
are pests of the first importance while a third is occasionally 

* Family A leurodidae. 

t Dialeurodes citri R. & H. 

i D. citrifolii, Morgan. 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CITRUS FRUITS 611 

important (the Woolly Whitefly *) . The last named species is al- 
most perfectly controlled by a Hymenopterus parasite, 

The Kfe history of all these is essentially the same, as are their 
habits, and one discussion will fit all reasonably well. 

The eggs are minute objects laid on the under side of the leaves. 
The young crawl about and begin to suck sap, staying away from 
the light as much as possible. They soon become stationary, like 
scales, and remain so until the growth is completed, when they 
transform to adults which are minute fly-like insects about one- 
sixteenth inch long. The wings are white and covered with a fine 
waxy powder. 

Injury from whiteflies is the result of their feeding habits which 
drain the tree of its sap and also of the production by them of 
quantities of honey-dew, the effect of which is exactly the same in 
this case as in the case of the scale insects having the same habit, 
that is, the growth of sooty-mold on all parts covered with the 
honey-dew and the consequent interference with the function of 
the leaf and the necessity which arises for washing affected fruits 
with the attendant loss from the process. Blackening of the trees 
from the sooty-mold is the most prominent sign of the presence of 
the whiteflies in number. 

Control of Whiteflies f 

Whiteflies maybe controlled by spraying and by fumigation. 
The practice of these control methods as applied to whiteflies does 
not differ materially from the same methods as used for scales and 
mealy-bugs. They are therefore all discussed under the general 
head dealing with control measures for these insects. Another 
means of controlling the whitefly, and applicable only to it, is the 
control by the use of parasites or fungus diseases which attack 
these insects. 

There are four of these diseases which are most important in the 

control of whiteflies, with but one exception they infect the 

young insects only. Of these the most important is the Brown 

Fungus {Mgerita wehberi), which appears as brown spots on the 

under side of the leaves. A young whitefly attacked by one of 

these spores produces a growth of the fungus from which minute 

* Aleurothrixus howardii, Quaintance. 

tSee P. H. Rolfe and H. S. Fawcett, Bulletin 119, Florida Exp. Sta. 



612 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

threads or hyphae extend out in every direction and carry the disease 
to other young on the same leaf without the production of more 
spores. The hyph(^ grow around the edge of the leaf to the upper 
surface and there produce the spores. When the spores are pro- 
duced they are carried by the wind and other natural agencies and 
are quite likely to infect all the flies on a tree or even in a grove. 

This fungus appears mainly in the late summer and in the 
autumn and grows best in wet weather. It attacks both the 
Common Whitefly and the Cloudy-Winged Whitefly. 

The Red Fungus or Red Aschersonia (Aschersonia aleyrodis), 
is next in importance. It develops in and oh the young fly and 
does not send out the hyphae as does the brown fungus. It can 
therefore be carried only in the spore form. The spores are formed 
in small pits on the fungus growth, such growths being called fungus 
pustules. This species thrives earher in the season than does the 
brown fungus and it also is effective against both the common 
species. 

The Yellow Fungus, or Yellow Aschersonia (^sc^ersoma ^awo- 
citrina) is interesting as well as important. In appearance and 
growth it is almost exactly like the red fungus, but bright lemon 
yellow. It affects only the Cloudy-winged Whitefly, of which it 
is an important parasite. 

The fourth species of importance is called Microcera (Fusarium) 
and is particularity destructive to the Cloudy-winged Whitefly. 
It attacks several of the scale insects as well as the whitefly and is 
of importance in their control. It grows more quickly than the 
other fungi, requiring less than a week for the formation of spores 
where the other species require nearly a month. It infests young 
larvae to the greatest extent, but attacks both eggs and adults as 
well. It thrives better during cooler weather than do the others, 
but it needs plenty of moisture. 

All fungi do best under rainy weather conditions, and it is 
said that if the rainy season persisted throughout the year there 
would be no need for artificial measures of control for the whitefly 
and possibly also for some of the scales. 

Preservation and distribution of fungi. — These fungi may be 
preserved until needed by placing leaves with the fungus and 
spores present on them in cold storage or by drying the leaves and 
storing them. From such material, cultures may be introduced 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CITRUS FRUITS 613 

early in the season before fresh fungus is available. Special di- 
rections for this should be obtained from the State Plant Board 
or the State Experiment Station,* (of Florida). 

The fungus is introduced into groves or trees infested with 
whitefly but free from fungus, either by placing infected leaves 
in and about the trees or by making a Virater infusion from the 
leaves, thus forming an infusion of the si)ores and spraying or 
sprinkling this on the under side of the leaves. When material is 
scarce the infusion may be placed in a large pan or bucket and the 
ends of a few branches of each tree dipped into this, dependence 
for further spread being placed on the natural methods of 
dissemination. 

The recommendation for the use of fungi states that they may 
not always be depended upon for complete control, but that, in 
the best practice, use should be made of them in connection with 
the use of the contact insecticides described. 

Pure Cultures of Fungi. — Of the several fungus parasites of 
whiteflies known in Florida, two, namely, the Red Aschersonia 
and the Yellow Aschersonia, can be readily grown in the laboratory 
in pure cultures on sterihzed sweet potato. The brown fungus 
has also been tried, but while a vegetative growth can readily be 
obtained it has so far refused to produce spores. The methods 
for growing these fungi in pure cultures were perfected some years 
ago by the Florida Experiment Station.f 

When in 1915 the State Plant Board of Florida was organized, 
the growing of pure cultures of the Red and Yellow Aschersonias 
became one of the projects of the Entomological Department. 
Since that time a few hundred to as many as several thousand 
cultures have been annually produced. A culture consists of the 
amount of fungus and fungus spores that can be grown in a pint 
widemouth bottle and is sufficient for starting fungus in an acre 
grove. More or less may be used but the amount indicated has 
been found to be quite sufficient. Sterilized plugs of sweet 
potato were originally the medium upon which these fungi were 
grown, but it was soon discovered that the addition of a small 

* See E. W. Berger, Bulletins 97 and 103, and J. R.Watson, Bulletin 123, 
and Annual Reports for 1907 of the Entomologist and Pathologist, Fla. 
Agr. Exp. Sta. 

t See H. S. Fawcett, "Fungi Parasitic upori Aleyrodes citri,'' Special 
studies No. 1, Univ. of the State of Fla., June 1908. See also, E. W. Berger, 
p. 12, Bulletin 103, Florida Exp. Sta., 1910. 



614 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

amount of agar improved the consistency of the cultures so that 
they can be shipped without contents of the bottle becoming 
mixed up, or disarranged. The presence of the agar, furthermore, 
permitted allowing the contents of the bottles to cool and harden 
in a sloping position, resulting in what has been called a 
"Sweet potato-agar-slant" which has certain advantages for 
manipulation in the laboratory 

Control of Scale Insects, Mealy-bugs and Whitefly. 

Three general methods for the control of the above insects are 
used. They are, spraying, practiced in California and in Florida 
with equal success; fumigating, practiced in California, but not 
so successful under Florida conditions on account of the large 
amount of rainfall; and control by the encouragement and dis- 
tribution of fungi parasitic on the insects, this method being 
adapted to Florida conditions rather than to those which obtain 
in California, since these fungi usually are favored by excessive 
amounts of moisture. 

Spraying. — Spraying for the insects in question is rather 
increasing in favor as new methods and materials are being per- 
fected. Formerly it was considered impossible to do successful 
spraying for these insects because of the close heads and dense 
foliage of the citrus trees and their lack of a dormant period 
which would permit the use of insecticides stronger than the 
foliage could stand and would also permit more thorough treatment 
of the trunk and branches than is possible where the tree retains 
its foliage for the entire year. 

However, sprays have been developed which will kill the insects 
without injury to the foliage and there are spraying machines with 
which these sprays can be applied thoroughly with careful labor. 
Lack of success is likely to be due to faults in the application of the 
sprays rather than to the inefficiency of the method. 

In spraying for all the insects in this list several things must be 
considered. First is the fact that these are all sucking insects 
which must be hit by the spray to be killed; second is the fact 
that there are several stages, some of which are more easily killed 
by spray materials than are others so it is necessary to have a 
reasonable knowledge of these stages in order to apply the sprays 
when they will do the most good ; and third, the fact that they 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CITRUS FRUITS 615 

breed and increase with great rapidity so that a few individuals 
escaping the first treatment may in a few weeks make additional 
treatments necessary, even with the most efficient spraying. 

Spray materials most widely used are the oil emulsions and 
miscible oils. In Florida there are two kinds of emulsions used, 
called the boiled emulsion and the cold-stirred emulsion. Direc- 
tions for making these are given by Mr. W. W. Yothers in Farmers' 
Bulletin 933, U. S. Department of Agriculture, and are quoted 
here as the best available: 

''Experiments covering a 10-year period have shown that the 
best insecticides for controlling white flies and scale insects are 
those having a base of cheap lubricating oil or what may be called 
'paraffin oil.' These oils are made into emulsions according to 
the formulas following. 

''Fish-oil soap at the rate of from 5 to 8 pounds to 50 gallons 
of water in May, or from 12 to 16 pounds to 50 gallons of water 
during the winter season, is an effective spray that has been used 
for many years without injury to the foliage or fruit. 

''While both the fish-oil soap and the oil emulsions are effective 
in killing the whiteflies and scale insects, experience indicates 
that the latter are far superior to the former under Florida con- 
ditions. This superiority is due to the physical properties of the 
oils. The high boiling point and great viscosity possessed by 
these oils make them operative over a longer period of time after 
application, and, too, they are only slowly affected by average 
temperatures and showers. Foliage sprayed with miscible oils 
remains slightly oily in appearance and to the touch for several 
weeks after apraying. Fish-oil soap leaves no such evidence 
that the trees have been sprayed. The oil spray is much less 
affected by showers than is the fish-oil-soap spray. Summer 
showers falling after the oil spray has once had an opportunity 
to dry on the foliage have little effect in lessening the efficiency 
of the spray. Such showers, however, have a very evident effect 
upon the number of insects killed by the soap spray. The effective- 
ness of the weaker strengths of fish-oil soap is much more reduced 
by showers than is the effectiveness of the weaker strengths of 
oil sprays. 

''In experimental work on a large scale for the control of the 
citrus white fly the miscible-oil sprays have given better results 



616 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

than have the soap sprays. This greater efficiency seems to be 
due, not to a higher percentages of larvae and pupae killed when 
the spray is applied, but to the effect that oil sprays exert upon 
unhatched eggs or upon the young larvae hatching from them 
within 10 to 14 days after spraying. The oil forms a film over the 
eggs which prevents a large percentage from hatching, and the 
young larvae from those which do hatch are killed either in the 
act of emerging from the shell or in crawling over the oil-coated 
leaf. Those who are in touch with the white-fly problem 
appreciate the fact that no matter how efficacious an insecticide 
may be in killing larvae and pupae on the leaves at the time 
the spray is applied, if it does not either kill these unhatched 
eggs or remain operative long enough to kill the larvae that sub- 
sequently hatch, much of the benefit of spraying is counter- 
balanced by reinfestation. 

''There are two ways of making miscible-oil emulsions: 
(1) Without heat; (2) with heat. The first is called the 'cold- 
stirred emulsion' the second, the 'boiled' emulsion. Both 
kinds of emulsion are efficient, reliable, and easily made. 

Cold-Stirred Emulsion. 

„. , ., Formula. 

Fish-oil soap: 

By weight 8 pounds 

By measure 1 gallon 

Paraffin oil, 24 or 28 Baume 2 gallons 

Water 1 gallon 

'^Directions for 'preparation. — In preparing the stock mixture," 
the soap should be put into a receptacle of about five gallons 
capacity and the oil added while the mixture is being vigorously 
stirred. It is important that the oil be added in small quantities 
at first, and that the stirring be sufficient to keep the oil and soap 
in the form of an emulsion after each addition of oil. Thus, at 
first about a pint of oil should be added to the soap and the 
mixture stirred until no free oil appears. As the amount of oil is 
increased it should always be stirred or mixed thoroughly before 
the next addition is made. After the required amount of oil 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CITRUS FRUITS 617 

has been added and after free oil has ceased to appear on top of the 
soap, the water is slowly poured in, about 1 quart at a time 
As previously stated, the only apparatus required to make this 
formula in a small way is an ordinary galvanized iron pail and a 
paddle. 

"The foregoing formula may be modified under certain con- 
ditions, as the quantity of soap will depend largely upon the time 
consumed in adding the oil and the amount of stirring; the amount 
of soap being lessened if the stirring be uniform and ample time 
be taken in the careful preparation. 

If it be desired to make this formula on a large scale, a 300- 
gallon cylindrical tank may be fitted with paddles, which are 
attached to a shaft in a vertical position, occupying the center 
of the tank. The shaft is fitted with a beveled gear on the upper 
end. A horizontal shaft is then connected with the vertical shaft 
by means of another beveled gear, while the other end has a 
pulley to connect with the engine. A series -of brakes should be 
fitted to the sides of the tank to prevent the entire mass from 
turning around with the paddles. An entire barrel of fish-oil 
soap may be placed in this tank and the stirring begun at once. 
Two barrels of oil may then be run into the soap through an 
inch or l|-inch hole in the end of the barrel, or the oil may 
be run out of the bung-hole. After the oil has been added, 
either one-half or two-thirds of one barrel of water can be added 
to complete the preparation of the stock solution. In the final 
spray this should be so diluted as to contain about 1 per cent of 
oil by adding 1 gallon of the stock solution to 50 gallons of water. 

"It is also highly practicable to fit up a 50-gallon barrel in the 
same way as described above for the 300-gallon tank. By attaching 
a crank to the horizontal shaft the mixer can be run by hand instead 
of by an engine. Such a mixer, designed and used by Mr. J. A. 
Stevens, De Land, Fla., has been found practicable. The writer 
has used an ice-cream freezer for making an emulsion, by removing 
the can and adding a false bottom of 1-inch board to hold up the 
stirring gears. In fact, many different types of mixers can be 
constructed, depending on the material available and the scope of 
the work involved. 



618 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

Boiled Emulsion. 

Formula. 

Parafl&n oil 2 gallons 

Water 1 gallon 

Fish-oil soap 2 pounds 

or 

Hard soap 2 pounds 

"Directions. — Put oil, water, and soap into a kettle or other 
vessel that will stand fire, and heat to the boiling point. While 
still very hot, pump the material into another vessel and then back 
again. Emulsion can not be made by this formula without a 
pump; stirring is not sufficient. 

"Dilute to make 200 gallons of spray material. 

" For making the above formula the writer has used 9 and 15- 
gallon kettles, wash boilers, and 100-gallon oil tanks with uniform 
success. 

" If it is desirable to make this formula on a somewhat larger 
scale, the materials can be heated in a large kettle or other vessel 
and then dipped into a barrel pump outfit and the mixture emulsi- 
fied by pumping it back upon itself. For safety it is best to have 
all the material pass through the pump twice, but it must not be 
pumped after it has become cool. Excessive pumping will break 
up a good emulsion. It can also be heated in a large galvanized 
oil tank having a capacity of 4 barrels and emulsified by means of 
the spraying machine. In this case the suction hose should be 
put into the tank of hot material and the discharge hose into the 
spray tank. For the second pumping, put the suction hose into 
the spray tank and the discharge hose into the storage barrels. 
When the spraying machine is used for this purpose, an old suction 
hose should be used, as well as a discarded piece of hose for the 
discharge end. This should be not more than 10 feet in length. 
The material should be run through an ordinary nozzle with the 
disk left off. The overflow will not emulsify this material. 

" Owing to the high temperature of the mixture, pumps used 
for emulsifying should have metal valves. If made of other 
material their period of usefulness is very short. It should always 
be remembered that a pressure pump must be used for emulsifying. 
The writer has never succeeded in making an emulsion with a 
rotary pump. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CITRUS FRUITS 619 

"Difficulties that may arise in making the boiled formula are: 
(1) A lack of sufficient heat; (2) improper pumping; (3) an improper 
emulsifier. In many tests the water and soap only were heated, 
and failure to produce a perfect emulsion resulted in every instance. 
On thB other hand, when all the materials were heated together a 
perfect emulsion was secured. The materials should be heated 
until a slight foam or a few bubbles appear, but it is not necessary 
to boil for any length of time. 

"Some growers have failed because they attempted to stir the 
materials together with a stick, and others because they used a 
rotary pump. Neither of these is satisfactory. 

"The emulsifying agent is very important. There is no doubt 
that potash fish-oil soap is the most satisfactory of all soaps for 
the making of any of these emulsions. When this material is 
used the oil very seldom separates and the resulting emulsions 
never become too thick to be poured or handled conveniently. 
On the other hand, when hard soaps are used which are made 
from caustic soda and fats containing large proportions of stearin 
and small quantities of resin, the emulsions separate on cooling, 
and will cause much trouble in mixing on the day after they are 
made. If the emulsion made from any hard soap found on the 
market is used on the same day that it is made no trouble will be 
experienced. The 'cold-stirred' formula is difficult to make with 
hard soaps. The writer has found it impossible to make emulsions 
by using any of the soap powders, even if flour is used as a 
stabilizer. 

"Before any spray material is applied to a tree it should be 
tested to determine if it is a perfect emulsion. To do this, add 
a small amount to some soft water; if no oil floats or no thick, 
greasy scum forms, it is satisfactory. If fi*ee oil appears the 
emulsion is imperfect and should not be used. Great care should 
be used to stir the contents of the barrel thoroughly before any 
test is made. 

"Just at present the boiled-emulsion formula is the one which 
will appeal to the average citrus grower in Florida. It is, beyond 
all question, the cheapest effective insecticide for white flies and 
scale insects. 

"The oils used in the making of these formulas usually test 
from 24° to 32° Baume and have a viscosity not less than 200. 



620 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

The best oils for spraying purposes have a viscosity of about 300 
to 400 and they may be purchased from any of the oil companies 
operating in the citrus-growing belt. Petroleum fuel oil and 
distillate or gas oil may also be used and when applied should be 
used at twice the strength indicated for the lubricating oils. 
The soaps may be purchased from any grocery or fertilizer 
company. 

Proprietary Miscible Oils. 

"There are several proprietary miscible oils on the market 
which the writer has found to give highly satisfactory results. 
These should be diluted so that the spray material will contain 
somewhere between ^ per cent and 1 per cent of oil. The writer 
would advise the use of oil emulsions when diluted to about 1 
per cent. Experience indicates that such substances as rosin 
oil and sulphuric acid should not be used in proprietary 
insecticides." 

Use of Fungus Diseases. — A method for the control of some 
citrus insects, particularly the whiteflies, in Florida, is the artificial 
dissemination of fungus spores causing certain fungus diseases 
to which these insects are susceptible. The discussion of the 
fungi and methods used is included with the discussion of the 
whiteflies as this method is not so extensively used for other 
insects. 

There are, however, four * principal fungus parasites or dis- 
eases, of scales that are at times very effective in the natural 
control of citrus scales in Florida and the Gulf Coast. These are 
the Red-headed Scale-fungus (Sphaerostible coccophila Tul) the 
White-headed Scale fungus {Ophionectra coccicola E. & E.), the 
Black Scale fungus {Myriangium duriaei Mont), and the Pink 
Scale fungus {Microcera fujikuroi Miyabe & Sawada). 

The first of these infects and kills the purple scale, long scale and 
chaff scale and several scales infesting deciduous trees, including 
the San Jose; the second infects the purple scale and long scale; 
the third the purple scale, chaff scale, long scale and San Jose Scale; 
the fourth the Florida red scale and purple scale. 

* See P. H. Rolfs and H. S. Fawcett, Bulletin 119 (Revision of 94). Fla. 
Exp. Sta. for the first three fungi named herewith. See J. R. Watson, Report 
of Entomologist, Annual Report 194, Fla. Exp. Sta. for the 4th or pink scale 
fungus. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CITRUS FRUITS 621 

These fungi are generally introduced or distributed in scale- 
infested trees by tying small pieces of fungus material (2 or 3 inches 
long) to twigs or branches having the most scale. The fungus 
material may also be rubbed up in water and the resulting infusion 
of spores and water sprayed into the trees or mixed with the 
infusion of spores used for distributing the whitefly-fungi 

Fumigation.* 

By all means the most popular and efficient means of control 
for citrus fruit insects in California is fumigation with hydrocyanic 
acid gas. General discussion of the nature of this gas and its 



Fig. 533. — Fumigation of citrus trees. Some steps in preparation. After 
Woglum, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 

preparation will be found in the chapter on insecticides in this 

volume. The application of the process to outdoor conditions for 

use to kill insects on trees is, in itself, a matter of special study. 

The work in California is usually done by contract by concerns 

which make that work their business, but the grower should have 

an idea of the nature of the process in order to be able to tell 

whether the work is being done properly. 

The fumigating season extends from August to January and 

the work should be done when the temperature is not either 

unusually high or unusually low. It is usually done during the 

night. 

*See R. S. Woglum, Farmers' Bulletin 823, U. S. Dept. of Agr. and 
bulletins of the California Agr. Expt. Station. 



622 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

The method consists, essentially, of the enclosure of the trees 
to be treated, in individual tents made of material as nearly im- 
previous to the gas as possible and of generating in the tents gas 
according to a variable table, based on the cubic content, the 
amount of leakage, which latter is less in proportion for large trees 
than for small, and upon other factors. Very accurate dosage 
tables have been worked out and are available wherever fumigation 
is a common practice. Time of exposure to the action of the gas 
is from 45 minutes to one hour, the same as for deciduous trees 
being fumigated in houses for San Jose Scale. 

Special machinery for the generation of the gas is used by the 
large fumigating concerns. With these the gas is generated out- 
side the tents and piped into them and the necessity for separate 
generating outfits for each tent is done away with. 

Fumigation has been tried rather extensively in Florida, but 
not so well adapted for Florida conditions as for those in California 
and so is not recommended for use in Florida. 

As mentioned before in connection with fumigation, it should 
not be undertaken except under the direction and advice of experts 
as otherwise there is danger to the trees and to the operator. 

The Citrus Thrips.* 

The Citrus Thrips is one of the smallest members of a group in 
which the largest species are considered as minute insects. It has 
been known to be injurious to citrus fruits for a quarter of a century 
but the injury was not generally recognized until about ten years 
ago, on account of the small size of the insect. So far as is now 
known it is confined almost entirely to California and is not found 
in the gulf states. In Florida a different species, the Florida 
Flower Thrips f is similarly injurious. 

The thrips sucks the juices from foliage and fruit and kills the 
cells surrounding its puncture. These dry up and form character- 
istic scabs and much of the injury is due to their thus scabbing the 
fruit, especially around the stem end where they cause a condition 
described as "stem-end ring." They also cause curling of the 
leaves and a grayish discoloration and interfere in this way with 

* Scirtothrips citri Moulton. See J. R. Horton, Bulletin 616, U. S. Dept. 
of Agr. 

t Frankliniella bispinosus Watson. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CITRUS FRUITS 



623 





the growth of the plant. Injury to young fruits often results in a 
large amount of dropping. Splitting and other deformation of the 
fruit is another evil 
effect of thrips in- 
jury. 

The California 
thrips is trans- 
ported from place 
to place for the most 
part on young trees 
where it is present 
in the egg stage. 
Local spread is the 
result of the flight 
of the adults. It 
is not confined to 
the citrus plants, 
but feeds on several 
others such as 
grape, pomegran- 
ate and apricot and 
these may serve as 
sources of infesta- 
tion. The life cycle 
requires about a r 

month and there Fig. 534.— Citrus Thrips: a, Young nymph; 6, Full grown 
are from six to eight nymph; c, Adult. After Horton, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 

generations which overlap so that they are practically indistin- 
guishable. The winter months are passed in the egg stage. The 
Florida flower thrips is present everywhere and infests the 
blossoms of many plants. 

Control. — Natural enemies are an important factor in thrips 
control. They include larvae of the lace-wing flies (Chrysopa 
californica Coq.), lady-bug larvae, some of the assassin-bugs 
(Reduviidoe) several species of spiders and a fungus disease. In 
some years these enemies will render artificial control measures 
unnecessary. 

Spraying is resorted to for control where any artificial measures 




624 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



are necessary. Horton 1. c, summarizes the spraying recommenda- 
tions based on spraying tests made in California as follows: 

"In the tests the following insecticides and combinations gave 
the best results. Any of these mixtures may be relied upon to 
give satisfactory control when properly applied. 

1. Lime-sulphur solution. — If the hme-sulphur is of a density 
of 36° Baume, dilute 1 gallon with 56 gallons of water; if of a 
density of 33° Baume, dilute 1 gallon with 50 gallons of water. 

2. Sulphur-soda solution. — Two gallons of the stock solution, 
prepared as described diluted with 25 gallons of water. * 

3. Lime-sulphur and tobacco extract (40 per cent nicotine 
sulphate). — Dilute 1 part of the Hme-sulphur, if 34 to 36° Baume, 




Fia. 535. — Graphic illustration of the seasonal activities of the citrus thrips 
as related to blossoming and later growth periods of the orange and 
indicating also the spray periods. After Horton, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 

with 86 parts of water; if 30 to 33° Baume, with 75 parts of water. 
Then add 1 part of the tobacco extract to 1,000 parts of the lime- 
sulphur as diluted above. 

4. Tobacco extract (40 per cent nicotine sulphate) . — Dilute 1 
part with 800 parts of water. 

Lime-sulphur and soda-sulphur solutions are more effective 

against the citrus thrips than any other mixture thus far tested, 

and particularly the lime-sulphur at the strength stated above- 

* The sulphur-soda solution was prepared as follows: 

Powdered sulphur 30 pounds 

Powdered caustic soda (98 per cent) 15 pounds 

Water to make 30 gallons 

The sulphur was made into a paste with water and the soda added, while 
the mixture was constantly stirred, in sufficient quantity to cause boihng, 
a Httle water being added occasionally to retard the cooking. When all 
the sulphur was dissolved, enough cold water was added to make a stock 
solution of 30 gallons. A clear, amber liquid, much resembling good lime- 
sulphur, was the result. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CITRUS FRUITS 625 

A large percentage of the thrips can be killed by spraying with this 
solution, and there is a further effectiveness due to its decompo- 
sition for a long period after deposition on the leaves. In orchards 
sprayed with good lime-sulphur the sulphurous odor is often strong 
for two months or more after the appHcations. The decomposition 
products repel the thrips, which are slower to reinfest orchards so 
sprayed than those sprayed with solutions that soon evaporate 
and leave no trace. 

"Tobacco extracts when used at the proper strengths are 
also very effective. Both tobacco extract and lime-sulphur, 
when mixed together, are effective in weaker solutions than when 
diluted with water alone. Contrary to expectation, the addition 
of soaps to tobacco extract did not give increased value to the 
tobacco in these tests. Soap solutions used alone appear to be 
worthless at the dilutions tested. 

"Resin wash at any strength practicable for use on the orange 
trees in this section is worthless. At the greatest strength used 
in these experiments it failed to reduce thrips injury to an extent 
worthy of attention. It is, furthermore, very injurious to fruit 
and foliage. 

"Plain water spraying was utterly ineffective, demonstrating 
that merely striking the thrips with a liquid at high pressure 
to wash them from the trees has no appreciable effect in dimin- 
ishing their numbers. A few hours after spraying with water 
there remained on the trees as many hving, active thrips as 
before spraying." 

The Florida Flower Thrips * 

The Florida Thrips is larger than the true citrus thrips, being 
about one twenty-fifth of an inch long while the other is frequently 
less than one-half that size. It is of a yellowish or yellowish-red 
color and may be observed most easily in or about the blossoms 
of the orange. It injures the fruits and plants in much the same 
way as does the citrus thrips but is more Ukely to destroy the 
blossoms or the fruit just as it is setting by making its way down 
into the flower to the ovary which it attacks. Its injury is more 

*Frankliniella bispinosus Watson. 



626 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



noticeable where there is a light amount of bloom, where the 
bloom is heavy the injury serves in a way as a natural thinning 

and may be beneficial. Dis- 
figuring of the fruit is a 
source of some loss from 
this insect. The life his- 
tory resembles that of the 
citrus thrips but there are 
probably more generations. 
They may be controlled, 
where control measures are 
essential, by the methods 
outlined for the citrus 
thrips. 




Fig. 536. — Florida Flower Thrips. From 
Watson after Dozier. Enlarged (Florida 
Agr. Exp. Sta.)- 



The Rust-mite or Silver-mite * 

According to Watson, the rust-mite is, in Florida, out-ranked 
as a pest only by the white fly and the purple scale. In CaH- 
fornia it is less important being restricted in its distribution, and 
called the ''Silver-mite" on account 
of its silvering effect on lemons. It was 
imported into California from Florida. 

The rust-mite is just visible to the 
unaided eye, is rather elongate and 
broader at the anterior end, tapering 
to a rather long point toward the 
posterior end. 

The eggs are few in number but 
hatch in a short time and the life 
cycle may take a period as short as 
two weeks. In consequence the mul- 
tiplication, during favorable seasons is 
very rapid. The broods are inseparable. 

Mites injure the foliage by sucking 
oils from the cells and in this way in- 
jures the trees. Their chief injury is, 
however, to the fruit which they at- 
tack in the same way. Here they cause 




Fig 



537. — Orange rust-mite: 
a, dorsal view; b, lateral 
view, enlarged, the dot in 
circle indicating natural size; 
c, leg; d, egg with embryo 
just about ready to hatch 
more enlarged. (After Hub- 
bard) U. S. Dept. of Agr. 



* Eriophyes oleivorus Ashmead. See H. 
Exp. Sta. Class Arachnida, order Acarina, 



J. Quayle, Bulletin 234, Cal. 
Family Eriophyidop. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CITRUS FRUITS 627 

arusseting of the fruit which reduces its quality mainly by 
detracting from its appearance but also by reducing the 
size. Oranges and grapefruit are the greatest sufferers in 
Florida. Russeted fruits may frequently, even now, be seen on 
the market. 

Control of the Rust Mite. — Weather conditions are a factor in 
the check of the mites, cold and wet weather being unfavorable 
to their development. These can not be relied upon to prevent 
damage and spraying is practiced wherever the mites are 
abundant. 

Sulphur is the best insecticide for these pests. It may be 
apphed in the form of a dust, mixed with hydrated lime which 
is used as a carrier, at the rate of one part hme to three parts 
sulphur. The dusting outfits discussed in the chapter devoted 
to spraying apparatus are suitable for use in applying this material, 
but care must be used to see that the dust carries through the 
dense foUage of the trees. 

Free sulphur mixed with water or with water and soap is 
a good spray for the mite. Four or five pounds of sulphur, four 
pounds of soap and fifty gallons water, are about the proper 
proportions. 

Commercial lime-sulphur testing 32°, Baume scale, should be 
diluted with seventy-five parts of water and will make a very 
good treatment for the mites. 

Soda-sulphur spray, made as described for the control of the 
thrips and diluted at the rate of one to forty, is another effective 
spray. 

Thoroughness is as important as for the treatment of other 
citrus pests. 

Red Spiders * 

These pests are, Uke the mites, members of the class Arachnida 
and the order Acarina, being, in fact, true mites themselves. 
They are larger than the rust mites and one species is quite red 
in color, being called the Florida red-spider, while the other is 

* Tetranychus mytilaspidis Riley (or T. citri McGregor. ) and T. sex- 
maculatus Riley. See H. J. Quayle (1. c). 



628 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



more greyish and has six dark spots which suggest the specific 
name and the common name of the six-spotted mite. 

Red-spiders are common in the spring or during dry weather. 





Fig. 538. — Red-spiders: The Citrus Red-spider, on the left; The Six-spotted 
mite on the right. After Quayle, California Agr. Expt. Sta. 

They feed on the juices of leaves and fruits and cause russeting 
and motthng of the fruit. Often they remain upon lemons in 
storage and cause injury during the curing process. 




Fig. 539.^The green lace-wing, Chrysopa californica Coq., an important 
enemy of red-spiders. After Quayle. 

Control is the same as for the rust-mite, the compounds of 
sulphur and sulphur in the free state having been found to be 
the best treatment for all forms of mites. 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CITRUS FRUITS 629 

Diabrotica soror * 

The most common of the leaf-beetles on citrus fruits on the 
Pacific coast are the members of this species which is almost 
identical with the twelve-spotted cucumber beetle or Southern 
corn-root worm. It attacks the tender foli- 
age of the orange but rarely damages the 
lemon. The larva, like that of the cu- 
cumber beetles, feeds on the roots of plants 
where it is little noticed. 

Control. — On small trees the beetles 
may be jarred off into tar or oil on screens 
while they are sluggish in the early morn- 
ing. On larger trees they must be poi- 
soned. Lead arsenate paste at the rate ^^"- 540.— -Z)i a 6 ro<ica 
^ _ soror. After Quayle, 

of two pounds to fifty gallons water is Cal. Agr. Exp. Sta. 

effective. The powdered form, applied as a dust with sulphur, 
might kill these beetles and the mites at the same time. 

The Melon Aphis f 

The Melon-aphis is occasionally injurious to the young shoots 
of citrus trees in the spring. They are of no special importance 
to the citrus trees, but as these serve as an alternate host they 
should be destroyed when present in considerable numbers, for 
the protection of the other host plants, such as melons, cotton 
and other plants. 

Black-leaf 40, 1 to 1000, with soap as a spreader, is effective 
here as elsewhere. 

The Orange Dog | 

This conspicuous caterpillar is the larva of an equally con- 
spicuous large, swallow-tail butterfly, black, with broad, yellow 
bands running diagonally across the fore wings and just inside 
the margins of both wings. 

The larva feeds on fohage but may easily be destroyed by hand- 
picking or by the use of any arsenical. This is a Florida species. 

* Family Chrysomelida'. 

\ Aphis gossypii Glover. See same, Chapter XVIII. 

j Papilio cresphontes Cramer. Family Papilionidm. 



630 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 
The illustration gives a good idea of the appearance of the larva. 




Fig. 541. — ^The orange dog caterpillar on Xanthoxylon. Slightly enlarged. 

The Southern Green Soldier-Bug.* 
This insect, also called the pumpkin-bug, along with some 




FiQ. 542. — Pumpkin bug (Nezara virdula) : Young. Six times natural size. 
(From U. S. Bur. of Ent.) 

* Nezara virdula Linn. Family Pentatomidce. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CITRUS FRUITS 631 

other bugs is common on truck crops, clovers and other plants 
and in the fall when these die and dry up they sometimes go to 
citrus where it attacks fruit and tender growth, causing the 
former to drop. 

It is similar in description and habits to the Green Soldier-bug 
described as a peach pest. The cotton stainer (Dysdercus 
suturellus) is often nearly as injurious. 

The adults go into partial hibernation during the winter 
months. There are several over-lapping generations. 

Control. — No spray has been developed to kill these bugs in 
the adult stage. Young will be killed by oil, soap and tobacco 
sprays. Adults may be collected by being jarred into large nets 
held under the trees. Bugs so collected are killed with kerosene. 

Argentine Ant.* 

The Argentine ant is a household pest of first importance in 
certain regions and has even greater importance in the citrus 
groves. It is primarily of importance in Louisiana but occurs in 
California as well. It has been known as a household pest in 
New Orleans for many years, but was imported about 1891, 
presumably from the Argentine, where it was originally described, 
on coffee ships running from points in Brazil to New Orleans. 

Its chief importance in citriculture is its interference with the 
various species of natural enemies of mealy-bugs and scale 
insects. It is also said to foster some kinds of scales and plant 
lice directly and to feed on buds, flowers and fruits of plants. 
It is important in the sugar-plantings of Louisiana where it 
fosters a mealy-bug (Pseudococous calceolaricB Mask.) which is 
one of the most important enemies to sugar-cane production. It 
is said also to interfere with the natural enemies of the boll 
weevil. This makes a heavy indictment for one minute insect but 
probably only faintly echoes the truth. 

The Argentine ant is a very small species of a general brownish 
color. They live in nests, usually in or on the ground but occasion- 
ally in trees. Their destruction is usually a matter of destruction 
of the nests, primarily, although it may be possible to destroy 
colonies by persistent poisoning of the adults away from the nests. 

* Iridomyrmex humilis Mayr. See J. R. Horton Farmers' Bulletin, 928 
U. S. D. A. and Bulletins 647, ibid., also Wilmon Newell, Jour. Ec. Ent., 
Vol. II, Nos. 2 and 5. 1909. 



632 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

The poison used to protect trees from these ants in the Cali- 
fornia orange groves has been described in the discussion of the 
mealy-bugs. An interesting account of methods of trapping and 
of poisoning to rid orange groves in Louisiana of the ants will be 
found in the publication by Mr. Horton to which reference has 
been made. 

There seems to be little doubt that, serious as this insect is, it 
can be controlled in orange groves and in dwellings, but that it is 
almost necessarily a problem for community action, if permanent 




FiQ. 543. — The Argentine Ant. Left, worker; Right, wingless queen. 
After Newell. Jour. Ec. Ent. 

results are to be secured. Space here will not permit further 
discussion of the very interesting problems arising from the 
study of the control of this ant. 

Other Citrus Insects, 

Some of the most important citrus-fruit insects do not yet 
occur in this country and large sums of money are spent annually 
to keep them out by maintaining rigid quarantines. They are, 
therefore, a source of expense to the industry, even though they 
are not actually present. 

Among these there should be mentioned the Mexican Orange 
Maggot (Trypeta ludens Loew.) and the Mediterranean Fruit 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO CITRUS FRUITS 



633 



Fly {Ceratitis capitata Wied.) and the Spring Citrus Whitcfly or 
the Black Fly (Aleurocanthus woglumi Ashby). 

The Black Fly, as the latter insect is now generally called, at- 




FiG, 544. — Fly of orange maggot (Trypeta ludens.) After Riley, 
tacks citrus, mango and avocado. It came originally from India. 
It is a serious pest in the Bahamas, Cuba and Jamaica, but is not 
known in Florida. The State Plant Board of Florida is main- 
taining a rigid quarantine to 
prevent the addition of this 
very dangerous pest to the 
list of enemies of the citrus 
grower in Florida. 

The orange maggot occurs 
in Mexico where it attacks 
oranges in much the same 
way that the apple-maggot 
injures apples, many maggots 
being found in the pulp of 
the infested fruit. The Med- 
iterranean fruit fly attacks 
oranges and also peaches and other fruits. It occurs in Ber- 
muda and Hawaii and also in all the continents but the mainland 
of North America. The nature of its injury is like that of the 
orange maggot. The adults of both species resemble the adults 
of the cherry-fruit fly, the currant fly and the apple-maggot. 




Fig. 545.- 



-Mediterranean fruit-fly. After 
Froggatt. 



634 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

Since citrus fruits are, as yet, in this country, free from insects 
which work within the fruit, no price can be too high to pay for 
the exclusion of these forms. 

The complete list of the citrus insects from the gulf states and 
California is a long one, but the reader who is interested will do 
well to consult the publications cited at the beginning of the 
chapter, as well as the bibliography, for more detailed accounts 
of the insects here treated and for the ones not mentioned. 



CHAPTER XXVIII 

INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MAN AND TO THE HOUSEHOLD. 

Many insects attack man, directly. Many others injure him 
indirectly by destroying his property within his dwelHngs or by 
annoying him by their presence even when they are not actually 
destructive. Such insects represent many groups of the most 
diverse habits. The study of some of the more serious of these 
■pests has, in comparatively recent years, been crystallized into 
the science known as medical entomology and through much of the 
widely advertised work pertaining to certain forms the public has 
come to realize, as never before, the importance of recognizing 
and controlling insects which were formerly tolerated. 

The Housefly* 

It is certainly safe to say that no insect is so well known as the 

housefly. It is present in every part of the world inhabited by 

civilized man and in most parts of the world which are capable 

of sustaining life at all. While it has always received recognition 

as a nuisance and a more or less filthy and repulsive object it is 

only recently that it has been recognized as an actual menace to 

the health of any community. The feeding habits of the adult 

render it particularly dangerous in the carrying of disease germs. 

It feeds alike on foods prepared for the table of man and on the 

vilest forms of animal waste, excrement, sputum, pus and any 

sort of decaying material. Most of these food materials of the 

fly are particularly adapted for the propagation of bacteria and 

many of such bacteria are disease-causing forms which may be 

infective when taken with the food. It is for this reason that the 

fly is particularly liable to be the agent for the transmission of 

typhoid fever and other diseases which affect the digestive 

tract. It is also quite capable of transmitting tuberculosis and 

* Musca domesHca Linn. Family Muscidce. See bulletins from the 
U. S. Dept. of Agr., and the State Experiment Stations. Titles too numerous 
to be listed. 

635 



636 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



is an object of suspicion in connection with any infectious 
disease. The structure of the adult fly and its habits make it 
more adaptable to the transmission of germ infections than 
any other insect. It has hairs and bristles on mouth-parts 
and feet which pick up filth or other matter. Secretions from the 
mouth parts aid in the infection. 

Possibly the greatest danger of infection from flies is through 
the milk supply, even though they frequent most other foods. 

Milk is an attractive food for 
flies and is also a very good 
culture medium for bacteria 
so that infection in milk is 
likely to develop more rapidly 
than in other foods. And flies, 
when they are permitted to 
be, are always more numerous 
about dairies and meat-mark- 
ets than elsewhere. However, 
it is not necessary here to build 
up a case against the fly. The 
foregoing remarks will serve 
merely as a reminder of what 
is already well-known. 

The fly breeds by preference 
in horse manure but will also 
breed in other kinds of man- 
ure, in many kinds of filth and 
garbage and even in human 
excrement. It winters in the 
larval and pupa stages and 
There are many overlapping 




Fig. 546.^ — Housefly above, the stable- 
fly below, showing difference in 
mouth parts. 



probably also in the adult stage 
generations in the year, those late in the season being much larger 
than the early ones because of the heavy mortality during the 
winter months. The adults need no description. They are sim- 
ilar to the stable-fly but differences in their mouth-parts illustrated 
in the accompanying figure will readily separate them. 

It will be seen that the mouth-parts of the housefly are such 
that it is unable to bite or puncture the skin. At times the house- 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MAN AND IN HOUSEHOLD 637 





flies seem to be biting. This is due to the fact, that under some 
weather conditions the stable flies seek shelter in the houses and 
they, with their piercing mouth-parts, do the biting generally 
attributed to the housefly. 

Larvae of houseflies are white 
maggots of the ordinary form. 
They are, when grown about three- 
eighths inch in length and may be 
found in the breeding places men- 
tioned. When ready to pupate 
they frequently leave the breed- 
ing material and travel some dis- 
tance in search of suitable places 
in which to pass the pupal stage. 
This habit has been utilized in 
control measures as at that time 
they can be trapped. * 

The pupae are found in the soil 
or under rubbish. They are brown, 
regular-oval objects, one-fourth Fig. 547.— Larvae of the housefly, 
inch in length and will not be readily distinguished from those of 
several other species. 

Control. — Housefly control is accomplished in several ways. 
The principal ones are abolition of breeding places and trapping of 
adults and larvae. Abolition of breeding places is done by protect- 
ing all material in which they may breed by screening or otherwise 
covering it until it may be destroyed. 
Fly-tight manure and garbage receptacles 
are widely used for this purpose. Gar- 
bages destroyed as promptly as possible 
and manure is distributed over the fields 
so that it will dry out and be no longer a 
suitable breeding material. If the 
screened receptacles of this type be further 
provided with flytraps, so that they will serve to attract and cap- 
ture the adult flies which would otherwise have deposited their 
eggs in them or fed there, they will serve a double purpose. 

* See E. N. Cory, Bulletin 213, Md. Agr. Exp. Sta. and R. H. Hutchinson, 
Bulletin 200, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 




Fig. 548. — Pupae of the 
housefly. 



638 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Adult flies are trapped in a great number of different kinds of 
traps. The principles of construction and operation are so familar 





Fig. 549. — Hodge type window trap. At left trap with end removed to show 
construction. At right, cross section of trap placed in window. A. End 
of trap; B, upper side of folds in screen; C, lower side of folds in screen; 

D, portion of end of trap sawed out and returned after attaching screen; 

E, holes along apex of folds; F, door for removing dead flies; G, window 
sill; H, upper window sash; /, inside entrance for flies; 0, outside entrance 
for flies. (After Bishopp, U. S. Dept. of Agr.) 

as not to need description. 
One is pictured below for 
use in windows of dwellings 
and stables, and others for 
different situations. 

Trapping of maggots is 
based upon the habit of mi- 
grating from the feeding 
place just before pupating. 
Practical traps are designed 
rather to capture the larvae 
breeding in manure than 
elsewhere since manure is 
Fig. 550.-TOP of garbage"^n with Hodge ^^^ ^^^^^ breeding material 




trap attached. 
of Agr.) 



(After Bishopp, U. S. Dept. 



stroyed. The construction is simple. 

lined with cement so that it will hold water. Over this, about a 



that can not, and should 

not, be immediately de- 

A shallow pit is dug and 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MAN AND IN HOUSEHOLD 639 



foot from the bottom, a slatted platform is constructed, the plat- 
form being a little smaller in area than the pit. On this platform 
the manure is stored. 
The manure should be 
kept wet. This may be 
accomplished by pump- 
ing or sprinkling water 
over the surface daily. 
This process also keeps 
water in the pit. When 
the larvae migrate they 
fall into the pit and are 
drowned. Experiments 
have shown that from 
95 to 99 per-cent of all 
the larvae can be de- 
stroyed in this wa3^ 
After about Um days the 
manure is no longer suit- 
able as a breeding place 
and it may be removed 
to make room for more. 
Details mav be secured 




Fig. 551. — Conical hoop fly trap. (After Bish- 
opp, U. S. Dept. of Agr.) 



may oe secured irom the pubhcations cited. 
Larvae are sometimes poisoned in their breeding places by 
treating the manure with powdered borax or hellebore, dry or in 

water. About one pound of 
borax to 16 cubic feet is the 
strength required, whileslightly 
less hellebore will give good 
results. Careless handUng of 
the borax, resulting in the un- 
even distribution or the use of 
too much may result in injury 
to plants fertilized with the 

manure. 

Fig. 552. — One of the green-bottle flies ■,- jj-^- j. j. u u 
(Lucilia caesar). Much enlarged. ^^ addition to the above 
Howard, U. S. Dept. of Agr. methods we have the time 

honored fly-papers, fly-killers, window-screens and poisons for the 
adult flies. These can, at best, give only partial rehef. 




640 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Cleanliness about the house and premises generally will result 
in much benefit as flies are attracted to dirty places by the sense 
of smell. 

Other flies are found about the house. Among these, the 




Fig. 553. — A "little house fly" {Fannia hrevis) : Female at left, male at right 
Much enlarged. After Howard, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 

stable-fly has been mentioned. The blue and green bottle flies 
are well known and are the usual source of maggots in meat. 
Some of the flesh-flies also produce maggots in meat when they 




FiG.55i.-Thec\nster-Ry,Polleniarudis Fig. 555.— The window-fly Scenopt- 
Fab. After Howard. ««s fenestrahs L. After Howard. 

have opportunity. Some flies of other species frequent houses but 
are harmless. A few of these are illustrated. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MAN AND IN HOUSEHOLD 641 





Mosquitoes * 

Mosquitoes, like house flies, have long been known as nuisances, 
almost intolerable in certain locations, but it is only within the 
last quarter of a century that 
their disease-carrying possibil- 
ities became known. It has 
been determined in that time 
that they are the sole means 
of the transmission of malarial 
fever and of yellow fever from 
man to man, that they trans- 
mit also certain tropical dis- 
eases, and that there are strong 
probabilities of their being im- 
plicated in the transmission of 
other diseases. 
Malarial fever is transmitted 



Fig. 556. — The house mosquito; Culex 
pipiens. After J. B. Smith, New Jer- 
sey Agr. Expt. Sta. 

by mosquitoes belonging to the genus 
Anopheles, of which there are several 
different species. It is caused by a 
minute one-celled animal of the lowest 
type, which resembles in many ways 
the bacteria, but is entirely distinct 
from them. This organism spends a 
part of its cycle of development in the 
body of the mosquito and a part in the 
blood of man. Taken from man in 
Fig. 557.-Distinction be- ^he blood sucked up by the mosquito, 
tween malarial and other it develops within the body of the mos- 
mosquitoes. Resting po- q^ito, then makes its way to the sal- 
sition of Culex above and . i i c . i ■, i • • 

Anopheles below. After ^vary glands of the mosquito and is m- 

Howard, U. S. Dept. of jected into the blood of the victims of 

^^' the mosquito when it bites. 

* Family Culicidae. See numerous publications, those of Dr. J. B. Smith, 
from the New Jersey Exp. Sta., and of Dr. L. O. Howard of the Bureau of 
Entomology, U. S. Dept. of Agr., being most extensive. 



642 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



The organism causing yellow fever is not known, but it is known 
by absolutely conclusive experimental evidence which has been 
demonstrated on a large scale, that a mosquito, {Aedes calopus) is 
the sole means of the transmission of the disease from a yellow 
fever patient to a healthy person. Soon after this was proven it 
was demonstrated. The city of Havana and the Panama Canal 
Zone, long centers of infection for the fever, were, by a vigorous 
campaign, freed from mosquitoes. Yellow fever, never known to 





Fig. 558. — Dorsal view of the 
larva of a malarial mosquito, 
Anopheles. After Smith, New 
Jersey Agr. Expt. Sta. 



FiQ. 559. — The yellow-fever 
mosquito; larva. Much en- 
larged. After Howard, U. S. 
Dept. of Agr. 



be absent in those regions, was thereafter almost unknown. Other 
cities have since followed these examples and the control of the 
once dreaded disease is merely a matter of thoroughness in ridding 
the localities of mosquitoes. Similar measures result in the 
lessening or disappearance of malaria. 

Mosquitoes breed in water, usually stagnant. The larvae are 
the common wrigglers which used to be summer residents of every 
rain-barrel. The pupae are sufficiently illustrated in the illustra- 
tions, so they need no description. 

Many species of mosquitoes are not known to carry diseases 
but are of extreme importance since, on account of their biting 
habits and tremendous numbers, they render large tracts of country 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MAN AND IN HOUSEHOLD 643 
almost uninhabitable and in other districts, greatly reduce the 




Fig. 560. — A malaria mosquito: a, eggs; h, larva; c, pupa; d, male adult; 
e, female adult. After Howard, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 

vitality of the people. Real estate values in such districts 
are, of course, far below the normal. Two important species, 




Fig. 661. — The yellow-fever mosquito; adult female, side view. Much 
enlarged. After Howard, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 



644 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



both of which we illustrate, are the House Mosquito (C^ilex 
pipiens), and the Salt-Marsh Mosquito {Culex sollicitans). 

Mosquito control is based upon the breeding habits. Eggs, 





Fig. 562.— The yellow-fever 
mosquito: pupa. Much en- 
larged. After Howard, U. 
S. Dept. of Agr. 



Fig. 563. — Culex pupa. After 
L. O. Howard, U. S. Dept. 
of Agr. 






larvae and pupae are found in the water. If stagnant water is 
removed from a locality the mosquitoes will go. If it is removed 
in part, the mosquito plague will be lessened. If it is rendered 
unfit for the mosquito in any way the effect will be the same. 
Control measures, therefore, in- 
clude drainage of swamps, ponds, 
pools and other standing water 
where possible; the oiling of stand- 
ing water that can not be drained 
away, since a film of oil on the 
surface of the water destroys 
all stages of the mosquitoes in 
the water and effectively prevents 
breeding so long as it remains; 
treating water with chemicals to 
destroy young of the mosquito; 
stocking sluggish streams and artificial lakes with species of fish 
which feed on mosquito larvae and pupae. Of these the most 
effective method is drainage. To be thoroughly effective it must 
take into account not only large bodies of water but also the water 
which may stand in sewers, old cans in a back yard, stopped-up 




¥4 



Fig. 564. — A mosquito egg-boat and 
larvae just hatched (Cwiex). From 
Howard, U. S. Dept. of Agr 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MAN AND IN HOUSEHOLD 645 




drain-pipes on houses and, in fact, any standing water which 

will remain for as much as a 
week. It is usually necessary to 
supplement drainage with oiling. 

In several states expensive 
drainage operations have re- 
claimed thousands of acres of 
land which was useless. These 
operations are usually under 
state direction and at state ex- 
pense, at least in part. 

The use of chemicals in the 
water is still in the experi- 
mental stage. 

Mosquitoes, in the north, usu- 
ally winter as adults. There are 
several generations in a season, a 
generation requiring in warm 

^, „. . ,,, weather less than two weeks and 

Fig. 565. — ^Culex sollicitans. (After . , ,, , , 

Smith,Report on Mosquitoes of New m cooler weather somewhat 

Jersey). longer. 

The accompanying illustrations will take the place of descriptions. 

Fleas * 

The flea is a third insect which has, within the very recent past 
been transferred from the list of innocuous pests and placed 
with the dangerous insect enemies of man. While it is true that 
some common species have not yet been proven to be specific 
bearers of disease it is now known that one, the rat-flea 
(Xenopsylla cheopsis) has been pretty definitely proven to be the 
usual, if not the only, means of transmission of the plague or 
bubonic fever. This fact puts all fleas under suspicion and makes 
them even less tolerable under civilized conditions than before. 

Fleas that affect man, in the more enlightened portions of the 
world, are more or less accidental visitors from domestic animals, 
usually cats and dogs. There are several species, the more 
important being the human flea (Pulex irritans), and the cat and 

* Order Siphonaptera. 



646 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

dog-flea, (Ctenocephalus canis). These breed in accumulations of 
organic matter in protected places where there is some moisture. 
This may be in cracks and crevices in the floor of a dwelling, in 
dirt floors of basement rooms, or in the soil under buildings where 
the animals are allowed to go. The larvae are like slender maggots 
and are rather inactive. The length of the life cycle is quite 
variable, ranging from less than three weeks to several months. 
Adult fleas attack animals of many kinds, including man. Some 




Fig, 566. — ^The dog flea: a, egg; 6, larva in cocoon; c, pupa; d, adult; b, c, d, 
much enlarged; a, more enlarged. U. S. Dept. of Agr. 

forms attack poultry and one of the most important members of 
the group is the chicken sticktight flea, discussed later. 

Domestic fleas are controlled by killing the adults and by 
eliminating breeding places. They may be killed on animals by 
the use of some of the insecticide soaps, of which there are many 
on the market, or by the use of some stock-dip composed 
of the coal-tar derivatives such as creolin, in water. All the fleas 
must be thoroughly wet with the mixture. Kerosene emulsion 
at a strength of about one to fifteen may be substituted, care 
being taken to have the oil all emulsified. Napthalene powder 



INECTS INJURIOUS TO MAN AND IN HOUSEHOLD 647 




dusted into the hair will cause the fleas to drop off. If the animal 
be held over white paper the stupefied fleas falling on the paper 
can easilj^ be caught and killed. 

Fleas in breeding places may be killed by treating with 
gasoline or kerosene, if where such substances can be used safely. 
Under permanent carpets the only remedy is to remove and 
thoroughly clean the carpets 
and to treat the floors with 
strong soapsuds or gasoline. 
Movable rugs are much better 
from the standpoint of flea 
control than carpets. It is 
probable that where a vacuum 
cleaner is used frequently little 
trouble will be experienced 
with fleas. When fleas are 
breeding out of doors all the 
rubbish should be cleaned off 
the ground and the soil soaked 
with salt water. 

Control of the rat flea in- 
volves destruction of rats and 
this is done in cities as a community proposition. In seaports 
such as San Francisco and New Orleans, where bubonic plague 
sometimes appears this is more important than elsewhere. At the 
same time modern civilization has proscribed the rat and it 
should be destroyed for other reasons. 

Further details in the treatment of fleas may be obtained from 
Farmers' Bulletin 897, U. S. Department of Agriculture, "Fleas 
and Their Control," by F. C. Bishopp. 

Bedbugs * 
The bedbug has not yet been proven guilty of transmitting 
any definite disease of importance in this country. It is under 
suspicion because its habits give it the opportunity to carry many 
different kinds of disease. This it undoubtedly does, in the role 
of a simple carrier, if not as a direct inoculator. 

The bedbug is a small, flattened, brownish insect which may 
* Cimex lectularius, Linn. Family Cimicidoe {Acanthiidae) . 



Fig. 567. — The human flea: adult male. 
Greatly enlarged. After Bishopp U. 
S. Dept. of Agr. 



648 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



reach the length of one fourth inch. It hves in the habitations of 
man, especially in old or poorly kept houses where it has plenty 
of cracks and crevices in which to hide or where it is little disturbed 
by the housekeeping process. The eggs are deposited in secluded 
places and the young resemble the adults. They feed to some 
extent on mice and on domestic animals and in addition can 
exist for long periods without food as they are often found in 
houses which have been vacant for months. 

Control is a matter of eliminating all hiding places possible 
and treating the others with benzine, kerosene, carbolic acid or 




Fig. 568. — Bedbug: a, and h, adult females from above and below, gorged 
blood; c, and d, structural details. (After Marlatt, U. S. Dept. of Agr., 
Ent. Bui. 4, n. s. 1896.) 

other substances and repeating the treatment until all signs of the 
bugs disappear. Fumigation and heating, to 120° or higher are 
effective when practical. 

Lice * 

Lice are the most disgusting of the human parasites and are 
no longer common among enlightened peoples except in situa- 
tions where the ordinary sanitary precautions can not be observed 
The louse, or "cootie" of the armies in the war is an example 
of extraordinary development of a species under unusual con- 

* Pediculidoe. Order Siphunculata. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MAN AND IN HOUSEHOLD 649 

ditions. Lice are more commonly found in camps and among 
children in poor surroundings. 

There are three common species: The head-louse (Pediculis 
capitis), the body-louse (Pediculus vestmenti), and the pubic 
louse {Phthinus inguinalis) 

The body louse is the "cootie" of the "A. E. F." or the "gray- 
back" of the lumber camps. It attaches itself to clorhing, con- 
cealing itself in seams where the eggs are laid. From there it makes 
its way to the body only to feed. The head louse spends its entire 
life in the hair on the head, attaching its eggs or "nits" to the 
hairs. 

Head lice may be killed by the use of hair-oils or other oil 
which will not injure the hair or skin. Clipping the hair is the 
best remedy for children. Body lice require treatment of the 
body and of the clothing. Clothing should be steamed or fumi- 
gated and underclothing boiled. Oils or sulphur ointment or 
"blue ointment" will kill the lice on the body. Oils were very 
largely used in the "de-lousing stations" among the allied armies 
in France. A very effective remedy is to sponge the entire body 
with a solution of bi-chloride of mercury, 1 to 1000, washing the 
body a few minutes later. This will kill all stages in one thorough 
application. It is applicable for all species but is not so desirable 
for use on the head louse. 

Chiggers* 

These pests will need little description for those readers who 
live in the South and the Central States, at least the effect of 
them will be familiar to all in those regions where they are the 
bane of the barefoot youngsters on the farm and are at -times 
troublesome to adults. They are minute mites, probably of 
different species, which live normally on certain weeds and are 
especially abundant in berry plantings or among wild berry 
vines. When they are jarred off onto the skin they immediately 
burrow and later become engorged with blood, causing intense 
itching and local swellings. This feeding habit is not normal for 
them and the mites die, but only after the damage is done. 

* Order Acarina, Class Arachnida. 



650 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

Susceptible persons should avoid places where the mites or 
chiggers are known to be numerous or, if compelled to visit such 
places may prevent ill effects by bathing in strong soapy water 
to which some salt has been added. If this is done within a 
few hours, no inconvenience will be noticed. After the injury 
has appeared, the irritation may be allayed by use of ammonia 
or soda. Sulphur dusted into the clothes will prevent attack 
by the mites. 

The season for the mites is mid-summer to early autumn. 




Fig. 569. — Common " Chiggers ". Leptus americanus at left ; Leptus irritans 
at right. Highly magnified, dots under anal extremity indicating natural 
size.. (After Riley), U. S. Dept. of Agr. 

Roaches * 

The roaches which infest the house are of several kinds, but 
all are alike in their habits and similar in their mode of develop- 
ment. They injure food not so much by feeding upon it, although 
they will eat almost anything, as by running over it and making 
it unfit for human consumption. 

Roaches hide during the daytime in cracks and crevices, under 
floors, behind baseboards, around water pipes and wherever they 
can escape observation. In these places they lay their eggs, 
which are produced in relatively large, bean-shaped capsules 
which are carried for some time projecting from the abdomen 
of the females. The young develop slowly, months being some- 
times required and often the eggs do not hatch for long periods, 

* Family Blattidoe. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MAN AND IN HOUSEHOLD 651 



For this reason control measures must be kept up persistently so 
as to kill newly hatched young as they appear from time to time 
Roaches may be killed with poisons or by fumigating or they 
may be trapped. A trap described by Mr. C. L. Marlatt, of 
the Bureau of Entomology, is the acme of simplicity. It consists 




Fig. 570. — The German roach {Blattella germanica): a, first stage; 6, second 
stage; c, third stage; d, fourth stage; e, adult; f, adult female with egg 
case; g, egg case, enlarged; h, adult with wings spread. All natural 
size except g. (From Riley, U. S. Dept. of Agr.) 

of an ordinary breadpan with the sides greased with rancid 
butter. The butter acts as a bait and the roaches fall into the 
pan and are unable to climb up the greased sides and escape. 








Fig. 571. — The American roach {Periplaneta americana): a, view from above; 
h, from beneath. Both enlarged one-third. After Marlatt, U. S. Dept. 
of Agr. 

Roaches may be poisoned with chocolate mixed with borax, 

about equal parts being used. Plaster of paris mixed with flour 

or with chocolate has also been I'ecommended. Sodium fluoride 



652 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

is the best standard poison and repellant. If this be dusted m 
all cracks and hiding places every few days and the treatment 
be kept up for several weeks, the roaches will be entirely killed 
or driven away. All control measures available should be put 
into use at the very first sign of roaches on the premises. If this 
is done no heavy infestation can occur. 

The common roaches belong to four species. The Oriental 
Cockroach {Blatta orientalis L.) is of European or Asiatic origin. 
The German Roach {Blatella germanica L .) , was also introduced 
from Europe while the Australian Roach (Periplaneta australasics 
Fabr.), comes to us from Australia. The fourth species is the 
American Roach {Periplaneta americana L.), the largest species 
and a native one. No essential difference in their habits is to 
be noted. 

House Ants * 

Ants of several species have been troublesome pests of man 
as far back as history gives any records. They destroy food and 
render it unfit for use and at times actu- 
ally attack man. There are several 
species. 

The Little Red Ant, (Monomorium 

yharaonis Linn.,) is the smallest species 

and perhaps the worst. It makes its 

nests under houses or in the ground 

nearby and is often difficult to get at. 

The Little Black Ant, {Monomorium 

minimum Buckley,) is larger and darker 

^ "^ \ in color, being about three-sixteenths of 

Fig. 572.— The Little Red an inch in length while the previous 

Ant. From Riley. species is not more than half that length. 

The black form generally makes its nests outside the house 

where they are more readily accessible. 

The Argentine Ant (see page 631), has already been discussed. 
It is the most serious pest among the ants where it occurs. 

The Black Pavement Ant, {Tetramorium ccEspitum Linn.,) is 
much larger than the others, some individuals being nearly one- 
half inch long. It is frequently found in houses but is never as 
numerous as the smaller species. 
* Family Formicidoe. 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MAN AND IN HOUSEHOLD 653 



Ants may be controlled by exposing poisoned syrup, made 
according to the directions given on page 608, where they can 
have easy access to it. The writer has tried this many times for 
different ants and they have invariably disappeared in a short 
time. This has been so satisfactory that it seems unnecessary 
to suggest anj'thing else. 

The Carpet Beetle * 

The Carpet Beetle, the larva of which is commonly called the 
"Buffalo-Moth," injures carpets and other animal products or 
fabrics. The adult is a small beetle one-eighth inch in length, of 
oval shape and dark or black color with lighter markings giving it a 




Fig. 573.— The Carpet Beetle. From Riley. 



mottled effect. The larvae are thick, soft-bodied, hairy grubs 
found in and about the food materials. Eggs are laid on the food 
and eggs, larvae and pupae will be found in or near the food while 
the adults leave the houses and fly to flowers at times. 

A similar species, darker in color and without the light markings, 
is the Black Carpet Beetle (Attagenus piceus Oliv.). 

Control measures consist in taking up carpets and rugs and 
beating and airing them. Thorough sweeping of the floors 
followed by treatment of the' cracks with gasoline will kill the 
young which may be present. Fumigation or heating will be 
found to be effective. The substitution of rugs for carpets is 
advised. Where this is not desirable protection for the carpets 
can be secured by placing building paper under them and dusting 

* Anthrenus scrophularicr L., Family Derrnestidw. 



654 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



or sprinkling the paper with alum, powdered or in solution. If 
the paper is not used the same protection will be secured by 
dusting powdered alum under the carpets. A vacuum cleaner 
is very effective in keeping out these insects. 

The Clothes Moths * 

The clothes moths are among the most annoying of household 
pests and the injury they do is considerable. They feed on woolens, ' 
feathers and fur and more rarely on other fabrics. There are 
three species, the Case-Making Moth (Tinea pelioneUa L.), 
being the most common while the Webbing Clothes-Moth (Tinea 
biselliella Hummel), is common in some more southern localities 




Fig. 574. — A clothes moth (Tinea pellionella). From Riley. 

and a third, the Tapestry Moth (Tricophaga tapet^ella L.), is 
rather rare and much larger and more striking in color than the 
commoner species. The common forms are minute yellowish- 
white moths with faint darker markings. One species makes 
for itself small tube-like cases of the material upon which it is 
feeding and silk spun by itself. The other spins webs throughout 
its galleries but does not make cases. The larvae are very small 
whitish caterpillars. The case-making moth has but one genera- 
tion appearing in the spring while the other common species has a 
fall generation as well. 

Small quantities of clothing may easily be protected by fumigat- 
ing them in a trunk with carbon bisulphide, observing the usual 
precautions. They may also be fumigated in a good tight 
clothes-closet, preferably in an unused room. Moth proof 

*Famly Tineidae. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO MAN AND IN HOUSEHOLD 655 



bags for the storage of woolen articles are of value. Cold storage 
is one of the safest forms of protection through the summer 
months. Any box which can be made practically air-tight will 
afford protection if the articles are uninfested when the boxes are 
closed. 

We have found that storing in rooms where the temperature 
is uniformly high, above 90 at all times, will afford as complete 
protection as the cold storage. 

Miscellaneous Household Insects 

The Silverfish or Fish-Moth (Lepisma saccharalis or domestica) 
is an insect which sometimes defaces papers or gets into food 
materials but is not usually serious.' 
The general belief is that they feed on 
starchy materials by preference but will 
feed on animal matter. 

The House Centipede {Scutigera 
forceps), not an insect at all but a cen- 
tipede, is a slender-bodied animal with 
many very long legs frequently seen 
running on walls and ceilings. It is 
not injurious, except to delicate nerves, 
as it feeds upon flies and other insects. 

Book-lice (Corrodentia), are minute 
louse-like insects, almost colorless and^ 
just large enough to be seen, which 
run over old books and papers and 
sometimes may deface them slightly. 
They, however, do httle damage and 
need not be feared. Fig 575 -Adult silverfish 

. about two and one-tourtn 

White ants or Termites [Leiicotermes times natural size (Marlatt, 
flavipes), are ant-like insects which U. S. Dept. of Agr.) 
sometimes do considerable injury by mining into the foundation 
timbers, floors and even walls of houses. They have been known 
to cause the collapse of large buildings and often necessitate 
replacing foundations and floors in the southern states. They 
injure plants also, injury having been noted on the orange, on 
plum and particularly on apple-seedlings in the middle-west. 




656 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



They live, like true ants, in colonies and have different kinds 
of individuals or castes. 

Except for the black, winged males and females which may be 
seen emerging and flying from the nests for a few days in the 





Fig. 576. — The house centi- Fig. 577. — Adult book-louse, about 
pede (Scutigera forceps): fifty times natural size (After 

Adult. Natural size. (After Back, U. S. Dept. of Agr.) 

Marlatt, U. S. Dept. of Agr.) 

spring, they are soft-bodied, yellowish-white, wingless insects 
about one-fourth inch long. They normally live in decaying 
wood out of doors. 

Control consists largely of prevention. Where they are 
prevalent it is well to use concrete for foundations or to treat 
timber to be used with creosote preparations of some kind. 

The insects injurious to stored grains infest also many stored 
food products. For a complete discussion of these the reader is 
referred to Chapter X. 



CHAPTER XXIX. 

INSECTS INJURIOUS TO DOMESTIC ANIMALS AND POULTRY 

Several of the insects listed as pests of man are also annoying 
or injurious to domestic animals. Among these the most import- 
ant are the mosquitoes. House flies, although present in large 
number where there are animals, do not cause injury of a direct 
nature and do not annoy the animals particularly since they are 

unable to bite. 

The Stable Fly* 

The stable fly resembles very closely the house fly, the most easily 
noticeable difference being in the mouth parts, as shown in Fig. 546. 

The habits of the stable fly are quite similar to those of the 
house fly also. The eggs are laid on straw or other material and 
the larvae develop on decaying vegetation of many kinds, usually 
in manure which contains a large amount of straw or in scattered 
or wet and decaying straw from the bottoms of stacks. 

The adults bite, attacking many domestic animals, and are 
frequently the most annoying 
and numerous of the flies to 
be found on animals, usually 
being so in stables. 

Stable fly control is se- 
cured in the same way as 
house fly control, by ehminat- 
ing, so far as possible, the 
breeding places and by trap- Fig 578.-The stable fly : Adult female, 
° '^ . , side view,ongorgea with blood. Greatly 

ping the adult flies. The enlarged. (After Bishopp, U. S. Dept. 

same means to accomplish °^ ^^^-^ 

these ends are used as in case of the house fly, taking into account 
the slight differences in the breeding places. A fly eradication cam- 
paign should make no difference in the species but destroy all flies 
possible. Control measures may be supplemented by protection 
of animals. This may be done by screening windows of stables 

* Stomoxys calcitrans L. Family Muscidoe. See F. C. Bishopp, Farmers' 
Bulletin 540. 

657 




658 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



or by darkening the stables. It is accomplished to some extent 
by the use of fly nets, most of which are of little use, or other 
covers for the animals. It is also accomplished by the use of 
repellant substances sprayed on the animals, but this process 
usually affords only temporary relief and is troublesome and 
expensive. Proper care of straw to prevent its becoming scattered, 
wet and rotten, will prevent breeding to a large extent. On the 
whole, the best control will be secured by the use of fly-traps in 
the stable windows and the disposal of such wastes as may furnish 
breeding places as promptly as conditions permit. 

The Horn Fly * 

In appearance the horn fly is very much like a small house fly 
but its mouth parts are similar to those of the stable fly and are 




Fig. 579. — The Horn fly: a, egg; h, larva; c, pupa; d, adult. (After Marlatt, 
U. S. Dept. of Agr.) 

used to good effect to the same purpose. It attacks cattle for the 
most part and is found clustered in large numbers about the horns, 
on the shoulders and flanks of cattle in pasture all through the 
summer. It is possibly the most annoying of the flies, attacking 
cattle, and is certainly responsible for loss of weight and reduction 
in the milk flow so noticeable in the fly season. 
* Haematobia serrata R.-D. Family Muscidoe. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO DOMESTIC ANIMALS, Etc. G59 



The horn fly was brought from Europe some fifty years ago 
and has spread over the greater part of this country. It is more 
diflScult to suggest control measures for it than for the other species 
since it breeds in the droppings from animals in the pastures. If 
these can be spread out so that they will dry quickly, no flies can 
develop, but it is seldom that conditions will permit this. Shelter- 
ing cattle during the hoat of the day and providing plenty of shade 
and water in the pastures will alleviate the discomfort of the 
animals. Provide brush patches through which the cattle may 
pass to brush off flies that they can remove in no other way. 
Repellents, as for the stable fly, while they may be somewhat 
effective will rarely be practical. 

Horse Flies * 
Several kinds of flies, ranging in size from that of the house fly 





Fia. 580.— The Black Horse Fly. (After Garman, Ky. Agr. Exp. Sta.) 

to more than an inch in length are common pests of horses and 
cattle and, upon occasion, attack man. The more familiar kinds 
* Family Tahanidce. 



660 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

are the large Black Horse Fly (Tahanus atratus Fab.), which is 
the largest form commonly seen and particularly abundant in 
wooded sections where its vicious biting and bullet-like flight 
make it quite conspicuous; a slightly smaller grayish-brown some- 
what striped species is nearly as large and is found on cattle more 
frequently than is the preceding; and the several smaller kinds 
with green eyes, suggesting the common name Greenheads, 
{Tahanus lineola Fab. is one), which attack by preference the ears 
of horses and do not hesitate to attack man. 

Larvae of horse flies are cylindrical maggots, pointed at both 
ends, which live in ponds and marshes. 

Little can be done to eliminate the horse flies, or gad-flies as they 
are sometimes called. Fly-nets, with ear-nets attached are much 
more useful for these than for the smaller flies which attack animals. 

The Screw Worm Fly * 

In the southwest an important insect pest of livestock, par- 
ticularly range animals, is a maggot or screw-worm, the larva of a 
fly intermediate in size and appeai'ance between the common house 
and stable flies and the green-bottle flies. The distribution of the 
insect includes the territory from the lakes to the gulf, but it is a 
serious problem only in the South and Southwest. 

The injury is the result of the work of the larvae in the flesh of 
the infested animals. Eggs are deposited by the adults in wounds 
or often even on exposed mucous membranes. The larvae upon 
hatching burrow in the flesh and cause inflammation and mechanical 
injury followed by infection and the sores refuse to heal without 
treatment. Wire-cut animals, saddle-galled horses, and range 
cattle at the time of calving, offer conditions suitable to attract 
these flies. Injury to man is not uncommon, the eggs being usually 
deposited in the nostrils during sleep and the larvae working their 
way up into the nasal passages. Children are the most frequent 
sufferers. 

The extent of the injury in the infested regions is hard to esti- 
mate but it is certainly great. The flies breed in decaying animal 
matter as a rule, the infestation of living animals being only an 
occasional habit for the species. 

* Chrysomyia macellaria Fabr. Family Muscidcp. See Bishopp, Mitchell 
and Parman, Farmers' Bulletin 857, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO DOMESTIC ANIMALS, Etc. 661 

Control is difficult, but partial control at least is not impossible. 
Since the great majority of the flies mature in carcasses of dead 
animals the proper disposal of these is of greatest importance. 
Burning is the approved method. If this can not be done they 
should be buried. If they can be covered with lime before the soil 
is thrown on them it will give better results. Elimination of 
points of infestation by prevention of wounds, destruction of ticks, 
since the tick wounds are points of entrance into the animals, and 
the arrangement of the calving season so that the calves will be 
produced when the flies are not present, will lessen the losses. 

Treatment of wounds already infested involves the use of 
chloroform to kill the maggots and the use of a good repellent 
substance on the wounds to keep away flies. Pine tar is recom- 
mended as a satisfactory repellent. 

Maggots from several other species of flies sometimes are found 
in wounds but they exhibit a preference for wounds showing 
infection and having some morbid flesh in them. Most any of the 
meat -infesting maggots may be found in such wounds. A species 
of particular importance is the Black Blowfly (Phormia regina 
Meig.), which oviposits in soiled wool of sheep. The larvae feed 
in the soiled wool and later, after the skin becomes irritated and 
sore, enter the flesh. Sanitary measures and the control measures 
advocated for the screw-worm will be effective for this fly. 

The Horse Bots * 

Horse bots are of three kinds, one of which is of rather restricted 
range. The common horse bot (Gastrophilus intestinalis DeGeer) 
is most abundant over the entire country. The Chin fly or throat- 
bot {G. nasalis), is also rather common and widely distributed. 
The third species, the nose-fly (G. hcBmorrhoidalis) , is found only 
in the North Central states and those to the west of that group. 

Bot flies vary a little in size and general appearance, but all 
resemble bees to some extent. The common bot-fly is seen in kte 
summer laying its eggs on the horses. It looks like a bee with a 
long slender abdomen which is doubled forward beneath the rest 
of the body and between the fore legs. The throat-bot is smaller 
and more hairy but otherwise similar. 

* Family Oestrida-. See W. E. Dove, Bulletin 597, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 



662 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

Eggs of the common bot fly are small, oval, yellow objects com- 
monly called nits, and attached to hairs on the fore-quarters of the 
horse. The horse licks them off and they hatch in the mouth, 
making their way into the stomach. Here they live some months, 
passing out with the excrement in the spring or early summer and 
pupating in the soil. Injury is due to malnutrition and to the 
irritation of the tissues of the stomach . 

The throat-bot differs in its habits in some details from the 
common bot-fly. It generally lays its eggs just under the chin or 




Fig. 581. — Bots attached to the wall of the stomach of a horse. (After 
Osborn, U. S. Dept. of Agr.) 

jaws. The larvae of this species sometimes attach themselves in 
the pharynx where they may seriously interfere with taking food 
or even with the breathing. They attach also in the stomach but 
are most frequently found in the duodenum where they may be 
so numerous as to interfere with the passage of the excreta, in 
which case serious consequences ensue. 

The nose-fly attaches its eggs usually on hairs on the lips and 
it causes much more excitement to the animal in the process than 
do the other species. Apparently the egg-laying in this situation 
is attended by some pain to the animal. The larvae attach in the 
stomach or duodenum and later, when nearly or quite grown 
reattach themselves in the rectum or anus, causing acute discom- 
fort to the animal and interfering with the passage of the excreta. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO DOMESTIC^ ANIMALS, Etc. 663 

Full grown larvae of all species drop to the ground and pupate 
in the soil. 

Work horses and horses kept in stables and given daily care can 
be protected from bot flies by treating the eggs every few days with 
benzine, kerosene or carbolic preparations or by clipping the hair. 
Horses in pastures or on the range, especially colts which are most 
frequent sufferers, can not be so easily protected. Mechanical 



Fig. 582. — Horse protected from attack of bot-flies. After Dove, U. S. Dept. 
of Agr. 

devices have been suggested to protect the animals, especially 
from the nose fly. A muzzle which has given some protection is 
copied from W. E. Dove, I. c. (See Fig. 582). 

If animals be furnished shelter which is somewhat darkened 
for the daylight hours and be encouraged to graze at night, con- 
siderable protection will result since the bots are active only 
during the daytime. 

Internal treatments to rid the infested animals of bots have 
been tried. The one recommended by the Department of Agri- 
culture is quoted below from Dove. 



664 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

" The day preceding the treatment a small amount of hay and 
a moderate amount of oats is given in the morning; in the evening 
food is withheld and a purgative given — Barbadoes aloes 1 ounce, 
or raw linseed oil 1 pint. The day of the treatment, at 6 o'clock 
in the morning, give 3 drams of carbon disulphid in a gelatin 
capsule; at 7 o'clock repeat the dose in the same manner; and at 
8 o'clock give the third and last dose, making in all 9 drams of 
carbon disulphid in three gelatin capsules. 

" The above treatment is for the adult horse. For a yearling 
colt half the quantity of carbon disulphid used for a mature horse 
will give the desired results. If properly administered the 
gelatin capsule reaches the stomach intact, but soon dissolves and 
the carbon disulphid rapidly evaporates, suffocating all bot 
larvae and other parasites with which it comes in contact, but 
not injuring the horse. Worms are quite often expelled as well." 



The Ox-warble * 

The Ox Warble is most prominent in the spring when it makes 
itself apparent in the swellings or warbles on the backs of cattle. 

It is the larva of a fly somewhat 
like the horse-bot fly but more like 
a drone bee. 

The flies lay their eggs on the 
legs and feet and the lower part of 
the body of the animal. Here they 
hatch and fall to the ground at- 
taching themselves to stems of 
grasses with which they are taken 
into the mouth of the animal, pass 
into the oesophagus and burrow 
their way into the thick walls of the 
oesophagus where they may be 
found in animals killed in early 
fall. From this location they make 
their way between the muscles until they finally lodge just beneath 
the skin of the back where they complete their development, cause 
the characteristic swellings and finally emerge through small holes 
* Hypoderma lineata Villers, Family Oestridae. 




Fig. 583.— The Ox Warble, female 
From "Insect Life." 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO DOMESTIC ANIMALS, Etc. 665 

which they.have made some time before, in the skin of the back 
They drop to the ground in the spring and pupate, the flies emerg- 
ing in early summer. 

The injury is from the irritation which they cause and also 
from the damage to hides caused by the presence of the exit holes 
of the warbles. 

Control of the ox warble is difficult. The usual practice is to 
destroy them by removing the grubs from the backs of cattle 




Fig. 584. — Young stages of the Ox Warble. From "Insect Life." 

when the lumps appear. This is done by squeezing them out 
through the exit holes. It is a good plan to treat the wound with 
a mild antiseptic solution after removing the maggot. 

Cattle may often be seen standing in water where it is available 
in pastures. This protects the submerged parts of the body from 
the oviposition and may be of considerable value. If running 
water is available for pastures it is of advantage. Young larvae, 
falling into running water will be carried away and not taken into 
the animal with the water which is drunk as sometimes probably 
happens in stagnant pools. Stabling during the day time and 
grazing at night during the fly season is always good practice 
where it can be done. 



666 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



A different species (Hypoderma hovis) is common in Europe and 
has been found in Canada and several localities in the United States. 

There is, after years of study and observation of the ox-warbles, 
still some difference of opinion as to how they get to their final 
location under the skin of the back. Some claim that they bore 
through the skin of the lower parts of the body and crawl beneath 
the skin to the back. Some observations to confirm this have been 
recorded. The other common belief is that the eggs are taken 
into the mouth, where they hatch and work through the walls of 
the oesophagus. 

The Sheep Grub * 

The third important example from the bot-fly family is the 
sheep grub. The adult of this species is smaller than that of the 
preceding but, like it, has some resemblance to a honey-bee. 
Adults are present throughout the summer and lay their maggots 

(the eggs being hatched in the 
body of the female) in the nos- 
trils of the sheep. The larvae 
then work their way up the 
nasal passages and into the 
frontal sinuses and sometimes 
even into the brain. They 
cause trouble familiar to sheep 
men under the name of the 
blind-staggers or gid. Symp- 
toms are giddiness, or in- 
FiG. 585.— Sheep bot flies with larvw and ability to control movements 
pupa. (After Riley.) naturally, loss of appetite and 

even death. The larvae remain in the head of the animal for as 
much as ten months, being sneezed out at maturity. They pupate 
in the ground and emerge as adults in some four to six weeks. 

Remedies are difficult to advise. Prevention of oviposition by 
providing darkened shelters for the daytime or by smearing the 
noses of the animals with tar will be of value. Tar may be 
renewed by the sheep in this way: Place small logs here and 
there in the pasture. Bore in these several holes with a two-inch 

* CEstris ovis L. Family (Estridcp. 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO DOMESTIC ANIMALS, Etc. 667 



augur and put salt in the holes. Around each hole smear a quantity 
of tar. Sheep seeking salt will get the tar on their noses and be 
protected in a measure as long as it remains. 

It is difficult to rid the sheep of the maggots once they have 
become estabhshed. In their early stages they may be reached 
by injection through the nostrils but later this is not practical. 
It should be done at any time under the advice of a veterinarian. 

Lice of Live Stock * 

There are two general groups of lice which may affect live- 
stock. These are the biting lice, Mallophaga, which feed on hair, 
scales from the epidermis and other waste on the animal, but are 
irritating to the animal and cause poor general condition, and the 
true lice or sucking lice, 
Siphunculota which suck 
blood from the host. 

Biting Lice f 

There are several species 
of biting lice to be found on 
domestic animals. Aside 
from the ones on poultry 
the most common are the 
biting lice of cattle {Triclio- 
dectes scalaris). These are 
small whitish forms about 
one-sixteenth of an inch in 
length and of the general 
form shown in the illustra- 
tion. 

A similar species occurs 

on the horse. It may be ^^^ sse.-The biting louse from cattle. 
a trifle larger and lighter U. S. Dept. of Agr. 

in color but otherwise will appear just as the cattle louse. Its 
specific name is T. parumpilosus. Biting lice on other live stock 
are more rare, but may occur. 

* See Marion Imes, Farmers' Bulletin 909, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 
t Mallophaga. 




668 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Sucking Lice * 

The common sucking louse of cattle is the short-nosed ox» 
louse (H (smatopinus eurysternus). It is bluish-gray in color 
and considerably larger than the biting louse, being about one- 



'^'^'^'"^^. f^3 








Fig. 587. — The short-nosed ox-louse. U. S. Dept. of Agr. 

eighth inch in length. The head of this species, as well as the 
other species of sucking lice, is rather pointed while the heads 
of the biting species are more rounded. 

The long-nosed ox-louse {H. vituli), is 
longer and more slender than the short- 
nosed louse. It is generally less in 
jurious. 

The long-nosed hog-louse {H. suis), 
is the largest member of this group 
which is at all common. It is nearly a 
quarter of an inch long and is broad 
across the abdomen. It is found on hogs 
frequently and is said to be the worst 
enemy of swine next to the cholera. Lice Fig. 588. — Long nosed ox- 
are easier to eradicate on swine than louse. U. S. Dept. of Agr. 
on the larger animals, so only neglect need cause loss from them . 
A biting louse (H. pedalis), is found on the feet and legs of 
sheep, below the long wool but it is rare and does little injury. 
Dogs occasionally become infested with lice, both sucking and biting. 
* Siphunculata 




INSECTS INJURIOUS T(3 DOMESTIC ANIMALS, Etc. 669 



Control of Lice 

Lice may be killed by the use of dips as recommended for 
other parasites. Spraying the animals with nicotine or kerosene 
emulsion will be effective provided all parts are wet with the 
spray clear to the skin. Some danger of colds to the animals 
must be considered when they are being dipped or sprayed. 

Sulphur or sulphur and lard, thoroughly applied, will kill lice. 

Experiments at the West Virginia Station have shown that 
lice on an animal can be killed by the use of blue-ointment. 
This is applied over a small area, two inches wide and six inches 
long, on the side of the neck or elsewhere, so it can not be reached 
by the animal. A small amount of the ointment is thoroughly 
rubbed into the skin. In a short time the lice disappear. Just 
what the action is, is not known. Precautions must be taken to 
keep the animals from licking the parts treated. This is easy 
in the case of hogs and horses, but more difficult with cattle which 
often lick each other. It will always be well to cover the treated 
parts with burlap, fastening it securely so that it can not be 
rubbed off and replacing it immediately if it becomes loosened. 

The Sheep Tick * 
The Sheep Tick is not a tick at all except in general appear- 



/A^ 



ance, but a wingless fly. The insect 
spends the entire life on the sheep, suck- 
ing blood from the host for nourish- 
ment. Development in this group is 
unusual, the young being retained in 
the bodies of the females as larvae until 
ready to pupate and being deposited not 
as eggs but as pupse, which are glued 
to the wool of the sheep. The effect 
of these parasites on the host is to lessen 
their vitality. This is generally in- 
dicated by the condition of the wool, 
which is rough and scraggly. 

Sheep ticks can be controlled by 
dipping the animals in Blackleaf 40 diluted 1 to 1000. 
best done at shearing time, as when the wool is long it is almost 

* Melophagus oinnus L. Family Hippoboscidre. Order Diptera. See 
Marion Imes, Farmers' Bulletin 798, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 




Fig. 589.— The Sheep Tick. 
Ky. Agr. Exp. Sta. 

This is 



670 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

impossible to get the dip to penetrate to all the ticks. Migra- 
tion from animal to animal is slow and flocks once freed from the 
ticks may be kept free by keeping out infested animals. Most of 
of the ticks are removed with shearing and sometimes, if the lambs 
do not become infested, shearing will eliminate the necessity for 
special treatment. 

Dipping for this and other pests will be discussed more in 
detail at the end of the chapter. 

Scab Mites* 

Scab mites attack cattle and sheep, causing a diseased con- 
dition called scabies. Similar mites attack horses, hogs and man, 
causing the irritation called itch or, in animals, mange. The 
more important of these are the species affecting cattle and sheep. 

Cattle Scab or Scabies * 

The organism causing cattle scab is a minute mite, and like 
other mites is not an insect but a member of the order Acarina, 





Fig. 590. — Sheep scab-mite. (After Good, Ky. Agr. Exp. Sta.) 

The mite is a minute oval object but is visible to the unaided eye. 

Eight short, tapering legs project from the margin of the body 

* Psoroptes communis bovis. See Marion Imes, Farmers' Bulletin 1017, 
U. S. Dept. of Agr. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO DOMESTIC ANIMALS, Etc. 671 

in different directions like the spokes of a wheel. The entire 
life is spent on the host and the life cycle requires about two 
weeks. Multiplication is rapid. 

Symptoms include a roughened condition of the coat on the 
infected areas, this gradually spreading all over the body and 
being followed by shedding of the hair and a scabby appearance 
of the skin, caused by the burrowing of the mites and the conse- 
quent irritated condition. 

Control of scabies is secured through the use of dips. Of 
these the lime-sulphur compounds are recommended, since they 
kill all the parasites which may be on the animal. Dipping will 
be discussed separately since it is the treatment recommended 
for several of the parasites of stock. 

Sheep Scab * 

The organism causing the sheep scab is merely a variety of 
the one causing the scab of cattle, Psoroptes communis ovis, 




Fig. 591. — Sheep infected with scabies. Early and late stages. Ky. Agr 

Exp. Sta. 

being the name for the sheep scab organism and P. communis 
hovis, being responsible for the cattle scab. A third variety 
P. communis equi, causes the scab of horses. 

The hfe^ history of the sheep scab mite is the same as for 
* See Marion Imes, Farmers' Bulletin 713, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 



672 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

the cattle scab and the symptoms are similar. Shedding of the 
wool in patches is an advanced symptom in sheep while a ragged 
condition of the wool shows earlier. 

Control of sheep scab, as of cattle scab, is accomplished by 
dipping, the same dips being available for both. 

Mange and Scabies of Horses * 

Scabies of horses is a disease similar to the scabies in cattle. 
Mange is caused by a mite of a different genus, {Sarcoptes scabei). 
The species involved has several varieties, named to indicate the 
host. Thus the one on horses is equi, on dogs it is called canis, on 
hog suis, while the same mite is hominis on man. The mites may 
be transferred from one host to another but generally do not live 
long except on the original host. The disease caused by the mange 
or itch mites does not differ materiallj^ from the ordinary scabies. 
Earliest indications of infection are a tendency to rub affected 
parts, the hair being entirely rubbed off in spots. 

Treatment of mange or scabies in horses, consists of rubbing some 
solution such as is used in dips into the skin of the affected parts, 
being sure that the entire infected area is treated and repeating the 
process three or four times at intervals of about four days. Lime- 
sulphur solution, as recommended for dipping, is as convenient 
and satisfactory as anything. Nicotine preparations will also 
be found to be effective. 

Swine Mange 

Swine mange manifests itself usually on the upper parts of the 
body from head to tail. A general roughened and unhealthy 
appearance of the skin will suggest the existence of the disease. 
This may be confirmed by the finding of the mites. This is done 
by scraping off the skin until some of the deeper layers are reached 
and examining with a microscope. 

Treatment consists of dipping or local application of some of 
the dips sold for the purpose or of home made lime-sulphur solution. 
If the animals are dipped the dip should be kept at about body 
temperature. 

Ticks Attacking Cattle * 

Several species of ticks attack cattle and others are occasional 
parasites of other animals and may be found on man. Perhaps 
* Order Acarina. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO DOMESTIC ANIMALS, Etc. 673 

the most serious of the ones attacking man is the tick which has 
received the name of the Rocky Mountain Fever Tick {Derma- 
centor venustus, Banks), because it has been shown to be an agent 
in the transmission of the fever of that name, which is a highly 
fatal disease occurring in many of the Rocky Mountain States but 
most prevalent and virulent in the Bitter Root Valley of Montana. 
This tick spends a part of its life on the smaller wild mammals and a 
part on the large mammals, wild and domestic. Upon occasion it 




Fig. 592. — The Rocky Mountain spotted fever tick. (After R. A. Cooley, 
Montana Agr. Exp. Sta.) 

bites man, and in so doing may infect him with the fever if it has 

previously received the virus from another infected person or 

animal. 

The Cattle Tick * 

The most important of the cattle ticks, and one of the most 
important of the arthropods affecting the cattle industry, is the 
Texas Fever Tick or North American Fever Tick, a common 
pest of cattle in the South and the sole means for the trans- 
mission of the disease known as Texas Fever. This disease and 
so the tick, has been the greatest obstacle to the establishment of 
the livestock industry in regions of the South which are otherwise 
well adapted to cattle raising. 

The fully grown adult ticks may be as much as a half inch long 
and 'are thick bodied and oval in shape. The head is much smaller 
than that of other ticks found on cattle and is reddish brown in 
color. Body color is yellowish or a dull brown with mottling of 

* Margaropus annulatus. See Farmers' Bulletin 1057 and numerous other 
U. S. Dept. of Agr. publications. 



674 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



yellow or brown of different shades. The adult female becomes 
engorged with blood and eggs and drops from the animal to the 
ground where she lays from 1500 to 3000 eggs. From these eggs 
the young or seed ticks hatch in from two to six weeks, depending 
on the temperature. The young seed ticks crawl onto grass or 




''::.p 


5. i 

i 


4 J < 

;3> 




<S>-' 









4. 






V 




■f 


.,> .^ '"' ; '.T 


* 




^ 








FiG."593.— The cattle tick (U. S. Dept. of Agr.): 3, mature female with eggs; 
4, ticks attached, to the hide; 5, blood cells containing Babesia organisms; 
10, various stages of ticks. Natural size except 5, which is enlarged 
1,000 times. 

weeds and transfer themselves to cattle at the first opportunity. 
If they fail to do this they die, but not necessarily for three or four 
months. On cattle they attach themselves to the tender and 
protected parts and suck blood, maturing in warm weather in some 
SIX weeks. If the parent of these ticks was from an infected animal, 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO DOMESTIC ANIMALS, Etc. 675 

they may infect the new host with the Texas fever at this stage, 
even though they are so small as to be scarcely visible. 

Texas fever is caused by a minute protozoan animal of the same 
general group as the parasite causing malaria (Babesia higemina.) 



FIELD NO.Z 
CORN. 

cohve/is 


riUD N0.3. 

COTTON FOLLOWED 
BV CRIMSON CLOVCR, V£TC». 
eun C10V£R OR Rye 


riELD N0.4-. 

0/IT6, 

COU/PEAS, 
BEtMUO/l, 
BUR CLOVtn 


HOVE THE HERD moM 

7W/5 FIILD TO FIELD 

N0.3. 


FTBR. IS.MOIfEJHCHlFlD 
TO FIELD NO 4-. 


becomes the neiv 
p/isture:. 








wiiiim 

HOUSE 






FIELD NO 1 

OCT IS MOVE H£RD TO FIELD NO.Z. 
PL/INT IN 0/!T.5 fiNO FOLLOW WITH COWPM^. 



Fig. 594. — Plan for freeing cattle and pastures from ticks by rotation, requir- 
ing eight months, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 

It passes from the body of the infected female, no one knows just 
how, into the eggs so that all her progeny are infective. Appar- 
ently healthy cattle from permanently infected districts are usually 
carriers of the disease but have developed immunity to the effects. 
They are as dangerous as sources of infection for the ticks as are 
the cattle sick with the disease. 

It has been definitely shown that the disease can not be trans- 
mitted in nature in any way except by the bites of the infected 
ticks. That being the case, the obvious way to eliminate the 
disease is to destroy the ticks. The U. S. Department of Agri- 



676 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



culture and the authorities in several of the southern states have 
worked out a plan whereby it is possible to eradicate the tick from 
the entire Texas fever area. This makes use of the habits of the 
ticks and the fact that they have no alternate host. The general 
scheme is a system of rotation of pastures. Cattle are removed 
from infested pastures, dipped to free them from ticks remaining 
on them or not, depending upon the number of pastures available. 



riUD NO. 2. 

OATS 

COWPtAS /IND 
eunciov/ER. 


FIELD N0.3. 

CORN. 

C0IVPU3. 


FIELD NO.^ 

COTTON. 
RYFlUND 
In/INTCR LCGVMCS. 


HOVe HffiO TO F/fLO 
NO J 




C/ITTLf W/UBf fRff 
or TICKS BY DZC.20 
B£TWE[N THIS DATE 
AND FEBFI. 15 HOVE THC 
HCRDTOrieU) NO.*. 


M/>Fl.iMOVE THE HERD 
TO FICLD NO. m. 










mu5i. 














PlBMflNENT I 1 PASTUFtE 




OCT/5 MC 


FltLD NO./ 

VETHCHCFIC 

NO. 2. 


B. 

TO FIELD ' iJUlYlMOVlH 
; iKTfP ALL A 
1 ir/ftO UNTIL 

] irfiff or r/c 


FIELD NO in 
tRDTOPASTUne NO 1 
NIMflLS OUT OFTHIS 
MflFI 1, UIHCN IT WILL 


B. 
BE 



Fig. 595. — Plan for freeing cattle and pastures from ticks by rotation, 
requiring four months, with new pasture, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 

The infested pasture is then plowed up or allowed to remain idle 
for some four months by the end of which time all ticks in it will 
have died. If there are tick free pastures available, the cattle 
from the first pasture may be dipped to kill the ticks upon them 
and then placed in the tick-free pasture, care being taken not to 
introduce, at any time, tick-carrying cattle into this pasture 



678 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

After four months they may be removed back to the original 
pasture. If, however, no tick-free pasture is available, a different 
scheme is used. The cattle are moved after as many of the adult 
ticks have dropped to the ground as are likely to drop off soon. 
They are then taken to another pasture, still infested at this time. 
Here they remain not more than twenty days when they are re- 
moved to a<third field where they remain another twenty days, and 
then to a fourth field where they remain until they are free of ticks, 
but from which they are removed before any seed ticks appear in 
the fifth field. This field is by this time tick-free and the cattle 
may remain there until the original field has had time to become 
free, which is usually shortly after this time. The time required 
depends upon the season of the year in which it is started. The 
accompanying diagram shows the general scheme of rotation in 
practice. 

The whole tick-infested area was placed under quarantine in 
1906 by the Federal authorities and movements of cattle from the 
quarantined area were permitted only under supervision. Since 
that time large parts of the quarantined area have been freed from 
ticks and the quarantine removed. The map shows the wonderful 
progress of this work. It is surely only a matter of a few years 
until the Texas fever tick, and with it the fever, will have disap- 
peared from the United States, 

Dipping Live Stock for Parasites 

Many of the external parasites are best treated by dipping 
them or immersing them in some solution of an insecticidal nature. 
Lice, sheep ticks, ticks on cattle and the mites causing mange and 
scabies all may be killed in this manner. 

Numerous dipping solutions or dips have been tried out and 
recommended. Only those which are apphcable to the majority 
of the pests in question will be mentioned here. 

Nicotine is a standard dipping material. It should be used at 
a strength containing approximately five one-hundredths of one 
per cent of nicotine. This strength corresponds to Black-leaf 
40 diluted one to 800. Other dips should be used in the same 
proportionate strength, dilution, for commercial products being 
usually indicated on the package. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO DOMESTIC ANIMALS, Etc. 679 

Lime-sulphur solutions have long been used for dipping cattle, 
having been manufactured for that purpose before they were used 
for spraying. They do not differ in composition from the same 
materials used as sprays. Strengths of commercial materials 
will be indicated on the package. Home-made materials should 
contain 8 pounds unslaked lime and 24 pounds sulphur to the 
hundred gallons. The process of cooking is the same as for the 
spray of the same materials. 

Sulphur and nicotine in combination have been used for 
dipping. In this dip flowers of sulphur is mixed with the nicotine, 
the amount necessary to make a 1 to 800 solution of nicotine con- 
taining two per cent of sulphur being used. These are then 
added to the water. 

Widely used dips for various purposes are the arsenical dips. 
Arsenical dips may be made by using caustic soda, 4 pounds, 
white arsenic 10 pounds and sal-soda crystals 10 pounds. Dis- 
solve the caustic soda in about a gallon of hot water and add the 
arsenic as fast as it can be dissolved in the hot water without 
boiling, then dilute to about four gallons and add the sal-soda, 
then dilute the whole to exactly five gallons. This forms one 
of the two necessary stock solutions. The other is made as 
follows: Dissolve ^-pound caustic soda in a quart of water, 
then add a gallon of pine tar, stirring until a smooth even mixture 
is secured. Both the above stock solutions should be kept in 
closed containers. The diluted dipping solution for use should 
contain four-fifths of a gallon of the arsenic stock and one-third 
gallon of the tar stock. 

Other dips are made from coal-tar preparations, but are usually 
sold as proprietary dips, and should be used as directed. 

Dipping vats are of many styles. For large stock ranches 
they may be made permanent and arranged so as to handle 
large numbers of animals. Smaller farms may well have per- 
manejit vats which need not be so elaborate. For small animals, 
sheep for instance, vats are not necessary but are desirable for 
convenience in handling the animals. Sheep may be dipped in 
large barrels. A canvas bag for dipping sheep has been used with 
satisfaction in small operations. 

Anyone contemplating the use of dips or the construction of 
dipping vats and apimratus should consult the Bureau of Animal 



680 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture, or the State Experiment 
Station, which will give free advice and often will be able to 
send experts to assist in the preparation for such work. Farmers* 
Bulletins Nos. 1057, 713, 909, 798, and 603 deal with pests for 
which dips are used and with the preparation of dips and dipping 
vats, and should be consulted before beginning such work. They 
like all Farmers' Bulletins, are free upon apphcation to the U. S. 
Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C. 

Poultry Lice * 

Only the biting lice attack poultry or birds of any kind, the 
sucking lice being found exclusively on mammals. Three species 
are common on chickens and others are 
occasionally found. Different species at- 
tack ducks, turkeys and other fowls. 

The Head Louse of Chickens f 

This louse is most frequently found 

on the head but may occur on the neck 

and other parts. It is dark grayish in 

color and may be as long as one-tenth inch. 

Eggs are deposited on the down or feathers 

about the head and the lice feed on the skin 

and feathers close to the skin. The life 

cycle requires about three weeks. Young 

resemble the adults except in size and in 

their lighter color. It is this species that 

causes most trouble with young chicks to 

which it passes readily from the mother hen. 

As the chickens get older these lice become 

less numerous and troublesome. Since 

Fig. 597. — Head louse: poultrymen insist that profits from poultry 
male, top view. Greatly ... , , , , . 

enlarged. After Bish- raismg depend very largely upon the vigor 

opp, U. S. Dept. of Agr. of young chicks it will be seen that the 

control of these lice is important. This may be accomplished as 

described later for all poultry lice. 

* Order Mallophaga. See F. C. Bishopp and H. P. Wood, Farmers' 
Bulletin 801, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 
t Lipeurus heretographus Nitzsch. 




INSECTS INJURIOUS TO DOMESTIC ANIMALS, Etc. 681 



The Body Louse of Chickens * 

Possibly the most common of the chicken lice is this species 
It is found on the skin of the fowl 
rather than on the feathers, but 
may occur on the neck and head 
as well as on the body. It is found 
most frequently just below the 
vent but may occur in numbers 
on other regions of the body and 
on the thighs. Eggs are laid in 
clusters near the base of the 
feathers, being most numerous in 
the regions where the lice are found 
in greatest numbers. The com- 
plete life cycle requires about a 
month, but there is little difference 
between the young and the adults 
except in size. The color is yel- 
lowish and the size of the grown 
forms is about one-twelfth of an 
inch in length. This species does 

the most damage 

The Shaft Louse t 
This species is smaller than the body 
louse and is sometimes called the small 
body louse although it is found on the 
feathers rather than on the body. It is 
found on the shaft of the feathers where it 
feeds on the barbs, for this reason being 
less injurious than the other species men- 
tioned, both of which feed on the skin to 
a great extent. 

Control of Chicken Lice * 

Control of these forms, as is the case with 
so many other pests, is best accomplished by 
prevention. If the premises and fowls 
Alenopon hiseriatum Piaget. f Menopon pallidum Nitzsch. 





Fig. 598 — Body louse: female un- 
derside. Greatly enlarged. After 
Bishopp, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 

to adult chickens. 



Fig. 599. — The Shaft 
Louse. U. S. Dept. 
of Agr. 



682 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

can once be entirely freed from lice, they may be kept so by keep- 
ing away all stray fowls and by thorough treatment of new stock 
may be brought in from the outside. To rid a flock of lice, the 
best time to do the work is late summer or fall, preferably before 
the moulting period, and when there are as few fowls in the flock 
as will likely be kept at any time. 

Experiments by Bishopp and Wood have shown that the best 
material for treatment is sodium fluoride, which is obtained in the 
form of a dry powder. One application of this material, properly 
used, is said to free the premises entirely from Hce. 

The material is appHed either as a dust or in water as a dip, 
the action as a dust being slower than when applied as a dip. 

Applied as a dust it should be placed in small quantities, about 
what can be picked up between the thumb and the forefinger, to at 
least a dozen different places on the body of the fowl, these places 
to be distributed as evenly as possible. Or the material may be 
sifted into the feathers while they are ruffled and spread out, but 
this method is not as convenient as the so-called pinch method. 

Sodium fluoride for dipping should be used at the rate of three- 
fourths ounce to the gaflon of lukewarm water and dipping should 
be done toward noon on a warm sunny day. The water should 
be placed in a tub and the fowls dipped directly into the water, 
the feathers being ruffled while the bird is submerged to allow 
the water to penetrate. The head is immersed once or twice 
after the rest of the body has been dipped. This method is 
quicker than the pinch method but should not be used in cold 
weather unless one has heated poultry houses to work in. 

In West Virginia it has been found that a pinch of blue- 
ointment rubbed into the skin just below the vent and another 
on the head and under the wings, will rid the fowls of hce but that 
this method must not be used for young chicks or for hens brooding 
young chicks. 

Other remedies for lice have been tried, but in view of the 
excellent results from the sodium fluoride treatment it would 
seem inadvisable to recommend any other treatment. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO DOMESTIC ANIMALS, Etc. 683 

Mites on Poultry* 

The Common Chicken Mite (Dermanyssus gallinae DeGeer,) 
is the most important of the chicken mites. It is of universal 
occurrence in this country where there are chickens. The mite 
itself is a minute whitish gray object, just large enough to be 
seen in good light with the unaided eye. The mites feed on 
blood from the chickens, and when numerous result in a condition 
of depleted vitality indicated by an unthrifty appearance. The 
mites feed on the poultry at night hiding in crevices in the houses, 
about the roosts and on the floors during the day. The life cycle 




Fig. 600.— The Common Chicken Mite, U. S. Dept. of Agr. 

in warm weather requires only a week so the increase in numbers 
may be extremely rapid. 

Control is based on this habit of leaving the fowls in the day 
and remaining in the houses. Application of many different kinds 
of insecticides will kill the mites if thoroughly done. In old badly 
infested houses all the roosts and nests should be removed, all the 
litter burned or buried deeply and the nest boxes and roosts 
themselves burned if they can easily be replaced as is often the 
case. The house should then be sprayed with a good spray from 
a pump which will give plenty of pressure. A good barrel outfit 
will be satisfactory. Good results can be secured with more work, 
in small houses by the use of some small atomizer but the larger 
outfit is to be preferred. The spray should be directed at different 



684 



INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 



angles toward all parts of the house. The floor should be soaked 
and even the roof or ceiling should be sprayed. Spraying the 
outside will help to give complete control as such spray will 
penetrate cracks which have not been reached from the inside. 

Roosts and nests should be made as simple as possible and as 
easily removable, for the sake of subsequent treatments, as can 
be arranged. 

Satisfactory sprays are crude petroleum, thinned with one- 
fourth its volume of kerosene, which will destroy all the mites 
at one application; kerosene or kerosene emulsion, which requires 
several treatments; lime-sulphur, which also should be applied 
three for four times at intervals of a week; whitewash, to which 
has been added five per cent of crude carbolic acid or cresol. 
Nicotine preparations have given good results but require two or 
three applications and must be used stronger than in spraying 
plants. 

The periodical use of a strong whitewash with carbolic acid 
added is a good sanitary measure, entirely aside from its effect 




Fig. 601. — Depluming scabies (C. laevis var. gallinae); (a) adult male (x 114); 
(6) adult female (x 108). (From Mote, after Sim, O. Agr. Exp. Sta ) 

on the mites and is to be recommended. If this is done, say once 
every two or three months, the mites will probably never become 
numerous. 

Other poultry mites include the Depluming Mite (Cnemido- 
copies gallinae Railliet), which burrows into the skin of the fowl 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO DOMESTIC ANIMALS, Etc. 



685 



near the base of the feathers. The intense itching caused by the 
mites induces the fowls to pick out feathers in their efforts to 
allay the irritation. 

The treatment recommended by Bishopp is the repeated use 
of sulphur ointment, well rubbed into the skin. H. P. Wood 





c 

Fig. 602. — Scaly leg (C mutans) : (a) leg of chicken infested by mites (reduced) : 
(b) mite in burrow in skin (x 60) ; (c) adult female (x 82) ; (d) adult male 
(x 130). (From Mote, after Sim, O Agr Exp. Sta.) 

reports * complete success in the control of this mite as well as 
lice by dipping the fowls in a solution of chemically pure sodium 
fluoride, two-thirds ounce, sulphur 2 ounces, laundry soap one- 
third ounce in about one gallon of water. Only one applica- 
tion was found necessary. 

The Scaly-leg Mite, the cause of the chicken disease called 

*Journal of Econ: Entomology, Vol. 12, No. 5. 



686 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

scaly-leg, burrows into the skin and beneath the scales of the 
feet and occasionally gets on the comb and the neck. The legs 
become encrusted with the scaly tissue resulting from the work 
of the mite and the feet sometimes get to be so tender that the 
fowl can scarcely walk. 

The treatment recomn^ended is to soak the leg* in warm water 
so as to soften the scales and then to dip the legs into crude 
petroleum. The same material applied to the roosts may pre- 
vent the spread which is from fowl to fowl on the roosts. 

Chiggers, the same as those found attacking man, are some- 
times troublesome to chickens which are allowed to roam in 
pasture fields grown up in brush as is common on farms. Dusting 
with sulphur dust and keeping chickens, especially the young ones, 
out of infested pastures, will aid in the control of the chiggers. 

Other Poultry Pests 
Beside the mites and lice named, there are other species which 




Fig. 603. — The sticktight flea: adult female. Much enlarged. (After 
Bishopp, U. S. Dept. of Agr.) 

attack chickens and each other kind of domestic fowl has its own 
species of these insects. These differ little from those found on 
chickens and will respond to the same treatment. 



INSECTS INJURIOUS TO DOMESTIC ANIMALS, Etc. 687 



Chickens suffer in some regions from the attacks of a flea, the 
Chicken Sticktight Flea {Echidnophaga galUnacea Westwood). 
This flea is occasionally found on dogs and cats, and on other 
animals, but is known for the most part as a pest of chickens, It 
occurs in the southern and southwestern states more abundantly 
than elsewhere. This flea is dark in color, almost black, and 
differs from other fleas in its feeding habits. When once it starts 
to feed it is difficult to dislodge while other fleas are correspond- 
ingly difficult to get to stay in one place. Bishopp reports that as 
high as 85 per cent of the young chicks have been killed by this 
flea and injury to older fowls is considerable. They infest first 
the heads and necks and later the bodies of the hosts, being present 
throughout the year. 

In control of the flea it is necessary, first to keep poultry away 
from other animals which may act as carriers; then clean out the 
chicken houses as for control of the mites, soak the floors, if of 
earth, with salt water and spray the house as for mites, but 
preferably with crude petroleum or with a solution of creolin, 
Treat all possible breeding places with the same substances and 
shut the chickens out from those which it is impossible to treat. 

The fleas themselves on the poultry may be killed by treating 
the infested portions with carbolated vaseline or with kerosene 
and lard. Destroy rats as these sometimes harbor the fleas. 

Other fleas which some- 
times infest poultry may be 
controlled in the same man- 
ner as the one above . 

A rather new poultry 
pest, found in the South- 
west only, is the Fowl-tick 
(Argas miniatus Kock) . 
Chickens may be killed by 
this pest and certainly no 
infested chicken can thrive. 
The appearance of the tick 
is not different from other 
ticks and large mites. Young remain attached to the hosts for 
several days but the older ticks feed at night only, hiding in cracks 
during the day as do the mites. Treating the house with crude 




Fig. 604. — The fowl tick: adult female, 
upper and lower sides. Greatly en- 
larged. (From Bishopp, U. S. Dept. 
of Agr.) 



688 INSECT PESTS OF FARM, GARDEN AND ORCHARD 

petroleum as for mites, is said to be more effective and satisfac- 
tory as a means of control than destruction of the pests once 
they are estabUshed. Proper sanitary and local quarantine meas- 
ures should be devised for this purpose, the object in general 
being to start business in uninfested quarters and by rigid inspec- 
tion and quarantine, to keep out all infested fowls. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 

An extended bibliography, to do so much as approximate 
completeness, would occupy much more space than can be 
devoted to it here. We therefore list only a few titles and 
indicate the general sources of information. 

1. Publications of the United States Department of Agricul- 
ture: 

a. Farmers' Bulletins. Sent free upon application. 

Over 1100 titles have been issued and a great 
proportion of these deal with entomology in its 
economic aspect. 

b. Department Bulletins. Nearly a thousand of these 

have been issued in the last seven years. They 
deal with problems in a somewhat more scientific 
and detailed manner than do the Farmers' 
Bulletins. A goodly number of them are upon 
entomological subjects. 

c. Bulletins of the Bureau of Entomology. About 

130 of these were issued. They deal with a wide 
range of subjects in the field of economic ento- 
mology. 

d. Circulars from the Bureau of Entomology. About 

175 of these were issued. They contain brief 
popular accounts of many of the common insects. 

e. The Journal of Agricultural Research. In this 

journal are published the results of original in- 
vestigations. Much excellent work on insects 
has been published in this journal. The indi- 
vidual papers are usually obtainable as separates. 

Many of these publications are to be obtained free from 
the Department of Agriculture. Others may be purchased 

689 



690 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

at small cost from The Superintendent of Documents, Wash- 
ington, D. C. Some titles are out of print, but such papers 
are usually obtainable in revised form in later publications. 
A very excellent library of entomology might be formed 
entirely of publications in the several series Usted above. 

2. Publications of the various state agricultural experiment 

stations. 

Each one of the several states maintains one or more 
experiment stations. These issue bulletins from time to time 
and much of the best information available on injurious 
insects is contained in these bulletins. Subjects of local 
interest are likely to be more fully treated in the state bulletins. 

These bulletins may always be obtained free upon appUca- 
cation so long as the supply lasts. 

3. State publications issued by agencies other than the State 

Agricultural Experiment Stations. This will include the 
State Departments of Agriculture which issue reports 
from the state entomologists. Much valuable informa- 
tion will be found in these reports which is not available 
elsewhere. Especially extensive reports of this nature 
are issued by the State Entomologists of New York, 
IlHnois, Minnesota, Missouri and Indiana. 

Other state agencies issuing publications which include 
entomological subjects are State Horticultural Boards or Com- 
missions, as in Florida and California, State Entomological 
Commissions and State Educational Departments. 

State pubUcations can usually be secured free upon appli- 
cation. 

4. The Journal of Economic Entomology. 

Much of the newest work in economic entomology is 
reported first in this journal and many articles are available 
there only. It issues six numbers annually and the subscrip- 
tion price is low. It may be obtained through Mr. A. F. 
Burgess, Melrose Highlands, Mass. 

5 General texts. 

Fundamental information on entomology is obtained best 
from some one of the standard texts, of which there are sev- 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 691 

eral, adapted more or less to the varying needs of students. 
Some titles follow: 

Manual for the Study of Insects, Comstock. J. H. & A. B. 

Comstock Publishing Co., Ithaca, N. Y. 
American Insects, Kellogg, V. L. Doubleday, Page and Co. 
School Entomology, Sanderson, E. D., and Peairs, L. M. 

John Wiley and Sons, Inc., N. Y. 
Agricultural Entomology, Osborn, H. F. Lippincott. 
Economic Entomology, Smith, J. B. Lippincott. 
Injurious Insects, O'Kane, W. C. Macmillan. 
Elementary Entomology, Sanderson, E. D., and Jackson, 

C. F. Ginn and Co. 
Manual of Vegetable Garden Insects, Crosby, C. R., and 

Leonard, M. D. Macmillan. 
Manual of Fruit Insects, Slingerland, M. V., and Crosby, 

C. R. Macmillan. 
Medical and Veterinary Entomology, Herms, W. B. Mac- 
millan. 
Handbook of Medical Entomology, Riley, W. A., and 

Johannsen, O. A. Comstock Publishing Co. 
Fumigation Methods, Johnson, W. G. The Orange- Judd 

Co. 

The above is a partial list. There are hundreds of other 
publications which will be of help to the student when they 
chance to be available. 



INDEX 



Acanthiidac, 647 

Acarina, 254, 563, 626, 649, 670, 683 
Achemon sphinx, 461 
Acrididse, 95 
Adalia bipunctata, 9 
Adhesives, 58 
Adoxus vitis, 443 
Aedes calopus, 642 
iEgerita webberi, 611 
Agallia sanguinolenta, 268 
Agrilus ruficollis, 409 
Agriotes mancus, 81 
Agromyza simplex, 382 
Agromyzidse, 382, 606 
Agrotis annexa, 88 
messoria, 85 
ypsilon, 85 
Air-slaked lime, 283 
Alabama argillacea, 228 
Aleurocanthus woglumi, 633 
Aleurodidse, 610 
Aleurothrixus howardi, 611 
Alfalfa caterpillar, 209 
looper, 211 
weevil, 195 
Alsophila pometaria, 501 
American acridium, 100 

frit fly, 132 

roach, 652 

syrphus-fly, 12 
Ampeloglypter ater, 447 
Amphicerus bicaudatus, 449 

punctipennis, 451 
Anarsia lineatella, 580 
Anasa tristis, 348 
Ancylis comptana, 396 
Angoumois grain moth, 182 
Anopheles, 640 



Ant, Argentine, 608, 652 
corn-field, 152 
little black, 652 
little red, 652 
pavement, 652 
Ant syrup, 608 
Ants, house, 652 
Ants, white, 655 
Anthomyia egg parasite, 103 
Anthomyiidaj, 291, 311, 314, 374, 411 
Anthonomus grandis, 243 

grandis thurberia?, 244 
quadrigibbus, 561 
signatus, 400 
Anthrenus scrophularia?, 653 
Apanteles congregatus, 220 
glomeratus, 323 
Aphididse, 135, 149, 226, 289, 299, 
333, 344, 389, 423, 432, 514, 528, 
586, 592 
Aphidius, 136, 295 

avenaphis, 136 
Aphis avense, 535 
brassicae, 333 
fitchii, 535 
forbesi, 389 
gossypii, 226, 344, 629 
maidi-radicis, 149 
maidis, 155 
medicaginis, 226 
persicae-niger, 586 
pomi, 12, 528 
pseudo-brassicse, 336 
pyri, 532 
rumicis, 289 
setarise, 594 
sorbi, 532 



694 



INDEX 



Aphis, apple, 528 

black peach, 585 
cabbage, 333 
corn-root, 149 
currant, 425 
English grain, 135 
European grain, 535 
green peach, 587 
melon, 344 
pea, 293 
rosy apple, 532 
spinach, 335 
spring grain, 137 
woolly, 514 
Aphis lions, 347 
Apple aphis, 528 

rosy, 532 
woolly, 514 
caterpillar, red-humped, 544 

yellow-necked, 542 
curculio, 561 
leafhopper, 273 
leaf miner, 545 
maggot, 559 
plant lice, 528 
Apple-tree borer, flat headed, 524 

round headed, 520 
tent caterpillar, 16, 538 
worm, 552 
worm, lesser, 553 
Apple twig borer, 449 
Application of insecticides, 56 
Arctiidaj, 232, 485 
Argas miniatus, 687 
Argentine ant, 608 
Arizona wild cotton weevil, 244 
Armored scales, 599 
Army worm, 110 

beet, 302 
fall, 114 
Arsenate of calcium, 42 

lead, powdered, 40, 41 
Arsenic, white, 43 
Arsenical dips, 679 



Arsenite of lead, 41 

lime, 41 

sodium, 43 

zinc, 43 
Aschersonia aleyrodes, 612 

flavocitrinis, 612 
Ash-gray blister beetle, 311 
Asparagus beetle, 378 

twelve spotted, 381 

miner, 382 
Asphalt paint, 53 
Asphaltum, 53, 523 
Aspidiotus camelliae, 601 

hederae, 602 

perniciosus, 470 

rapax, 601 
Assassin bugs, 623 
Atomizers, 59 
Attagenus piceus, 653 
Aulacizes irrorata, 234 
Australian roach, 652 
Autographa brassicae, 327 
calif ornica, 211 
simplex, 368 

Babesia bigemina, 675 
Bagworm, 503 
Banded flea-beetle, 363 
Banding material, 609 
Bark-beetle, fruit tree, 475 

peach tree, 582 
Barred winged onion maggot, 378 
Barrel pumps, 62 
Batrachedra rileya, 181 
Bean aphis, 289 

ladybird, 287 

leaf -beetle, 285 

weevil, 281 

European, 285 
four-spotted, 284 
Bedbugs, 647 
Bee-flies, 104 
Beet aphis, 299 

army worm, 302 

leaf beetle, 305 
leafhopper 307 



INDEX 



695 



Beet leaf miner, 311 

root aphis, 300 
Bembecia marginata, 403 
Bibliography, 689 
Bill bugs, 160 

maize, 162 
Biting lice, 667 
Black carpet beetle, 653 
cherry louse, 595 
Black-fly, 633 
"Black Leaf 40", 51 
Black peach aphis, 585 
scale, 602 
scale fungus, 620 
Blackberry gall maker, 411 
Blatta orientalis, 652 
Blatella germanica, 652 
Blattidae, 650 
Bhssus leucopterus, 90 
Blister beetle, ash gray, 288, 311 
Nuttall's, 288 
striped, 310 
Blister beetles, 104, 270, 288, 310 
Blister mite, 363 
Body louse, 649 

of chickens, 681 
Book lice, 655 
Boll weevil, 243 
worm, 168 
Bordeaux mixture, 53 

nozzle, 70 
Borer, cotton square, 232 
flat headed, 624 
grapecane, 449 
peach tree, 575 
peach twig, 580 
round headed, 520 
Botflies, 661 
Bottle flies, 640 
Brachymena 4-pustulata, 23 
Bracon mellitor, 251 
Braconidae, 16, 137 
Bran mash, 57 
Brown fungus , 67 

-tail moth, 489 
Bruchida;, 278 
BruGophagus funebris, 202 



Bruchus chinensis, 284 

obtectus, 281 

quadrimaculatus, 284 

pisorum, 278 

rufimanus, 285 
Bryobia pratensis, 198 
Bucket pumps, 59 
Bud moth, 549 
Bud worms, 221 
Buffalo moth, 652 
Buffalo tree-hopper, 478 
Buhach, 50 
Buprestidaj, 409, 524 
Byturus unicolor, 416 

Cabbage aphis, 333 

bug, Harlequin, 330 

butterfly, 321 

Southern, 326 

looper, 327 

maggot, 314 

plutella, 328 

worm, imported, 321 
Cadelle, 179 
Calandra granaria, 176 

oryzae, 176 
Calandrida;, 160, 176 
Calico-back, 330 
California peach-borer, 575 

red scale, 599 
Caliroa cerasi, 569 
Calocoris rapidus, 235 
Calosoma calidum, 14 
scrutator, 14 
sycophanta, 498 
Cambala annulata, 270 
Camnula pellucida, 99 
Canker worm, fall, 501 

spring, 499 
Canker worms, 498 
Cantharis nuttalli, 288 
Capsidffi, 235, 422, 571 
Carbolic acid emulsion, 52 
Carbolineum, 477 
Carbon bisulphide, 53, 186, 320 
Carpocapsa pomonella, 552 



696 



INDEX 



Carrot beetle, 369 

rust fly, 370 
Case-bearers, 547 
Case-making moth, 654 
Cassida bivittata, 385 
Cassidse, 384 
Cat and dog flea, 646 
Cathartus advense, 179 

gemellatus, 178 
Cattle scab, 670 

ticks, 672 
Carpet beetles, 653 
Ceratitis capitata, 633 
Ceroplastes floridensis, 604 
Cecidomyiidaj, 117, 133, 200 
Celery caterpillar, 366 

looper, 368 
Cephidse, 128 
Cephus occidentalis, 128 

pygmseus, 129 
Cerambycidae, 405, 520 
Ceratoma trifurcata, 285 
Ceresa bubalis, 478 
Chsetocnema confinis, 383 
Chaetopsis senea, 378 
Chaff scale, 602 
Chalcididai, 122, 202 
Chalcis flies, 17 
Cherry fruit fly, 596 

louse, black, 595 
Chicken lice, 681 

mites, 683 
Chiggers, 649 
Chilocorus bivulnerus, 11 
Chin-fly, 661 
Chinch bug, 90 
Chionaspis citri, 602 

furfura, 527 
Chiropachis colon, 476 
Chloridea obsoleta, 168, 221, 238 

virescens, 221 
Chrysobothris femorata, 524 
Chrysomelidffi, 143, 212, 260, 266, 
271, 285, 304, 338, 361, 378, 383, 
393, 441, 629 



Chrysomphalus aonidum, 602 
aurantii, 599 

citrinus, 600 
Chrysomyia macellaria, 660 
Chrysopidse, 137, 295, 347, 623 
Cicada, 26, 479 

septendecem, 479 
Cicadidae, 479 
Cigar case-bearer, 547 
Cigarette beetle, 224 
Cimicidse, 647 
Cimex lectularius, 647 
Cirphus unipuncta, 110 
Citrus insects, 599 

mealy bug, 606 

thrips, 622 
Clayton gas, 55 
Clothes moths, 654 
Cloudy-winged whitefly, 610 
Clover insects, 189 

hay-worm, 206 

leafhopper, 208 

leaf weevil, 192 

mite, 198 

root-borer, 189 

root curculio, 192 

seed caterpillar, 203 

seed chalcid, 202 

seed midge, 200 
Cluster-fly, 640 
Cnemidocoptes laevis gaUinae, 684 

mutans, 685 
Coccidffi, 470, 525, 583, 599 
Coccinella novem-notata, 8, 347 
Coccinellidffi, 8, 137, 287, 295, 351 
Coccotorus scutellaris, 590 
Coccus hesperidum, 603 
Codling moth, 552 
Collinus meromyzae, 133 
Colaspis brunnea, 393 
Cold storage, 655 
Coleophora fletcherella, 547 
malivorella, 547 
Colorado potato beetle, 260 
Compressed air spayers, 61 
Conotrachelus nenuphar, 505 
Contact insecticides, 39, 44 



INDEX 



697 



Convergent lady-bug, 10, 266 
Cooties, 649 
Coptocycla bicolor, 385 
Coreidae, 236, 348 
Corn-borer, European, 173 
Corn earworm, 21, 168 
Corn leaf aphis, 155 
root aphis, 149 

webworm, 146 
worm, southern, 144 
western, 143 
stalk borer, larger, 16 
lesser, 167 
wireworm, 81 
Cornfield ant, 152 
Corrodentia, 655 
Cotton boll cutworm, 241 
weevil, 243 
bollworm, 238 
caterpillars, 232 
dusting, 231 
leaf-bug, 235 
stainer, 237, 631 
worm, 228 

egg-parasite, 230 
square borer, 232 
Cottony-cushion scale, 604 
Cottony maple scale, 605 
Cow-pea weevil, 284 
CrambidsB, 146, 158, 213 
Crambus caliginosellus, 146, 213 
Craponius inaequalis, 466 
Criddle mixture, 110 
Cricoceris asparagi, 378 

12-punctata, 381 
Crop rotation, 30 
Crude petroleum, 45 
Ctenocephalus canis, 646 
Cucujdse, 177 

Cucumber beetle, spotted, 343 
striped, 340 
flea-beetle, 267 
Culex, 640 
Culex pipiens, 640 

sollicitans, 644 
Culicid-e. 641 



Curculio, apple, 561 

clover root, 192 
grape, 466 
plum, 505 
Curculionidaj, 192, 195, 243, 256,365, 
391,400,447,466,505,561, 590 
Curly-leaf, beet, 307 
Currant aphis, 425 

borer, imported, 418 
fly, 429 

span-worm, 428 
stem girdler, 419 
worm, imported, 426 
worm, native, 427 
Cut-offs, 74 
Cutworm, bronzed, 86 

cotton boll, 241 
dark-sided, 85 
dingy, 87 
glassy, 88 
granulated, 88 
greasy, 88 
well-marked, 88 
Cutworms, 86, 300 
Cydia pomonella, 552 
Cylas formicarius, 386 
Cymatophora ribearia, 428 
Cynipidse, 411 

Dactylopiinse, 606 

Dasyneura leguminicola, 200 

Datana ministra, 542 

Deilephila lineata, 232, 460 

Depluming mite, 684 

Dermacentor venustus, 673 

Dermanyssus gallinae, 683 

Dermestidae, 416, 652 

Desmia funeralis, 459 

Destruction of weevil, 186 

Development of insects, 20 

Diabrotica 12-punctata, 144, 343 
longicornis, 143 
soror, 629 
vittata, 272, 340 

Dialeurodes citri, 610 

citrifolii, 610 



698 



INDEX 



Diamond-back moth, 328 
Diaphania hyalinata, 359 

nitidalis, 356 
Diastrophus turgidus, 411 
Diatrsea zeacolella, 158 
Dictyophorus reticulatus, 101 
Diplosis tritici, 133 
Dipping live stock, 678 
Diptera, 15, 669 
Disc nozzles, 68 
Disonycha triangularis, 303 

xanthomelsena, 304 
Dolerus arvensis, 129 

collaris, 129 
Drasterius elegans, 81 
Drepressaria heraclina, 371 
Drone-fly, 11 
Dusting apparatus, 75 

mixtures, 77 
Dysdercus suturellus, 237, 631 

Earworm, 168 

Echidnophaga gallinacea, 687 
Egg-plant flea-beetle, 267 
Elachistidse, 181, 547 
Elasmopalpus lignosellus, 167 
Elateridse, 80 
Empoasca mali, 273 
Empusa aphidis, 295 

sphseroperma, 194 
Enarmonia interstictiana, 203 

prunivora, 553 
English grain-louse, 135 
Ephestia kuehniella, 179 
Epicauta vittata, 105, 310 
Epidaphus scabei, 269 
Epilachna borealis, 351 

varivestris, 287 
Epitrix cucumeris, 267 
fuscula, 267 
parvula, 212, 267 
Epochra canadensis, 429 
Eriophyes oleiverus, 626 

pyri, 563 
Eriophyidaj, 563, 627 
Eriosoma lanigera, 514 
Eristalis tenax, 11 



Estigmene acrsea, 232 
Eulecanium nigrofasciatum, 583 
Euproctis chrysorrhoea, 489 
European bean-weevil, 285 
corn-borer, 173 
grain-aphis, 535 
Eurymus eurytheme, 209 
Euschistus punctipes, 215 
Eutettix tenella, 307 
Euthrips nicotanijje, 225 
Evergreen bagworm, 16, 503 
Exorista flavicauda, 104 
leucaniae, ip4 

Fall army-worm, 114 

Fall canker worm, 501 

Fall webworm, 485 

Fannia brevis, 640 

Farm methods, 29 

Feltia subgothica, 87 

Fidia cana, 442 

viticida, 441 

Fiery ground beetle, 13 

Fire-bug, 330 

Fishmoth, 655 

Flea, cat and dog, 646 

chicken stick tight, 687 
human, 645 

Fleabeetle, banded, 363 

cucumber, 267 
egg-plant, 267 
grapevine, 451 
pale striped, 361 
potato, 267 
spinach, 304 
sweet potato, 383 
tobacco, 212, 267 

Fleabeetles, 266, 303, 338 

Fleas, 645, 687 

Flesh-fly, 104 

Florida flower thrips, 620, 626 
red scale, 602 

Flour moths, 179 

Fly-free datas, 120 

Fly nets, 660 

Fly-traps, 638 
Formicidffi, 652 



INDEX 



699 



Four-lined leaf-bug, 422 
Four-spotted bean weevil, 284 
Fowl-tick, 687 

Frankiniella bispinosus, 622, 625 
Fruitfly, cherry, 596 

Mediterranean, 632 
Fruit moth, 510 
Fruit-tree bark-beetle, 475 
Fumigation, 54, 281, 621 
Fusarium, 612 

Garden webworm, 211, 232, 363 
Gas tar, 82 
Gases, 39, 53 

Gastrophius haemorrhoidalis, 661 
intestinalis, 661 
nasalis, 661 
Gelechiidae, 182, 253, 580 
Geometridae, 428, 498 
German grain-aphis, 135 

roach, 652 
Girdler, grapecane, 447 
Glassy cutworm, 88 
Glassy-winged sharpshooter, 234 
Gold-bugs, 384 
Grain-beetle, foreign, 177 

red-necked, 177 
saw- toothed, 177 
Grain weevils, 176 
Granary weevil, 176 
Grape-berry moth, 462 
cane borer, 449 
cane girdler, 447 
curculio, 466 
leaf-hopper, 458, 459 
root-worm, 441 
Grapevine flea-beetle, 451 
phylloxera, 432 
root-borer, 436 
Grapholithida?, 203 
Graphops pubescens, 393 
Grass saw-fly, 129 

worm, 114 
Grasshoppers, 95 
Graybacks, 649 
Greedy scale, 601 



Green-bug, 137 

Green clover-worm, 211 

peach-aphis, 335, 587 
soldier-bug, 236, 590 

Ground beetles, 13 

Ground beetle, fiery, 13 
murky, 13 

Gryllidse, 407 

Gryptochsetum monophloebi, 606 

Gymnonychus appendiculatus, 427 

Gypsy moth, 492 

Hadena devastatrix, 88 
Hsematobia serrata, 658 
Haematopinus eurysternus, 668 

pedalis, 668 

suis, 668 

vituli, 668 
Haltica chalybea, 451 
Harlequin cabbage-bug, 330 
Harmolita grandis, 124 

tritici, 122 
Harpalus caliginosus, 15, 264 
Harpiphorus maculatus, 395 
Hawk-moths, 461 
Head louse, 649 

chicken, 680 
Heat, 188 
Hellebore, 43 
Hemispherical scale, 604 
Hessian-fly, 117 
Hippoboscida;, 669 
Hippodamia convergens, 10, 266, 357 
Hog-louse, 668 
Homalodisa triquetra, 234 
Hop plant-louse, 593 
Hopperdozers, 107 
Hopperette, 308 
Horizontal pumps, 66 
Horn-fly, 658 
Hornworms, 216 
Horse bots, 661 
Horse flies, 659 
Horse scab, 672 
House ants, 652 

centipede, 655 
mosquito, 644 



700 



INDEX 



Housefly, 635 
Household insects, 635 
Human flea, 645 
Hyalopterus arundinis, 592 
Hyalastinus obscurus, 189 
Hydrocyanic acid gas, 54, 187, 622 
Hydrometers, 49 
Hymenoptera, 15 
HjTnenopterous parasites, 15 
Hyphantria cunea, 485 

textor, 489 
Hypoderma bovis, 666 

lineata, 664 
Hypsopygia costalis, 206 

Icerya purchasi, 604 

Ichneumon flies, 15 

Ichneumonidse, 545 

Imported cabbage worm, 321 
currant borer, 418 
worm, 426 
grape root-worm, 443 
onion maggot, 374 

Indian-meal moth, 180 

Injury by insects, 1 

Insect parasites, 15 

Insecticides, 39 

application of, 56 
contact, 39 

Internal anatomy of insects. 28 

Iridomyrmex humilis, 608, 631 

Janus integer, 419 

Jassida;, 208, 234, 273, 307, 456 

Joint-worm, 121 

Kainit, 149 

Kedzie formula, 43 

Kerosene, 45 

emulsion, 44 
Knapsack pumps, 60 

Lace-wing flies, 295, 623 
Lachnosterna, genus, 78 

arcuata, 79 
Lady-bird, bean, 287 
Lady-bird, convergent, 347 

nine-spotted, 347 

spotted, 347 

squash, 351 



Lady-bugs, 8 

vedalia, 605 
Laphygma eAJgua, 302 

frugiperda, 114 
Larger corn-stalk borer, 158 
Lasiocampidae, 538 
Lasioderma serricorne, 224 
Lasius niger, 152 
Lasius niger, americanue, 152 
Laspeyresia molesta, 510 
Leaf-bug, four-liHed, 402 
Leaf-folder, grape, 459 
Leaf -footed bugs, 236 
Leaf-hopper, apple, 273 
grape, 456 
Leaf-miner, apple, 645 
beet, 311 
spinach, 311 
Lebia grandis, 14 
Lema trilineata, 271 
Lepidosaphes beckii, 599 
gloveri, 601 
ulmi, 525 
Lepisma domestica, 655 
saccharalis, 655 
Leptinotarsa decemlineata, 260 
Leptoglossus oppositus, 236 
Leptus americanus irritans, 650 
Lesser apple worm, 555 

corn-stalk borer, 167 
peach-tree borer, 575 
Leucopermes flavipes, 655 
Lice, 648 

on live stock, 667 
poultry, 680 
Light traps, 37 
Ligyrus gibbosus, 369 
Lime-sulphur wash, 46 

dilution table, 48 
Geneva formula, 
47 

self-boiled, 49 
Limneria sedemesia, 545 

fugitiva, 545 
Liparidse, 489 
Lipeurus heterographicus, 680 



INDEX 



701 



Little black ant, 652 
house-fly, 640 
red ant, 652 
Lixus concavus, 365 
Locust, California devastating, 99 

differential, 101 

lesser migratory, 98 

pellucid, 99 

red-legged, 99 

Rocky Mt., 95 

two-striped, 100 
London purple, 40 
Long-nosed hog louse, 668 
Long-nosed ox louse, 668 
Long scale, 601 
Loxostege similalis, 232, 363 

sticticalis, 301 
Lubber grasshopper, 101 
Lycaenidae, 232 
Lydella doryphorae, 262 
Lygaeidae, 90 
Lygus pratensis, 571 
Lysiphlebus testaceipes, 140, 347 

Macrobasis unicolor, 288, 311 
Macrodactylus subspinosus, 454 
Macrosiphum cerealis, 135 
granaria, 135 
pisi, 293 
solanifolii, 272 
Maize bill-rug, 163 
Malacosoma americana, 16, 538 
Malaria, 641 
Mallophaga, 667, 680 
Mange, horse, 672 
swine, 672 
Margaropus annulatus, 673 
Mayetiola destructor, 117 
Meal moths, 179 

snout-moth, 181 
Mealy bugs, 606 

plum-louse, 592 
Mediterranean flour moth, 179 

fruit-fly, 632 
Megilla maculata, 10, 347 
Melanoplus atlantis, 99 

bivittatus, 100 



Melanoplus devastator, 99 

differentialis, 101 
femur-rubrum, 99 
spretus, 95 
Melanotus cribulosus, 81 
Melittia satyriniformis, 353 
Meloida;, 270, 310 
Melon aphis, 344, 629 

caterpillar, 359 
Melophagus ovinus, 669 
Membracidse, 478 
Memythrus polistiformis, 436 
Menopon biseriatum, 681 

pallidum, 681 
Meromyzae americana, 129 
Metamorphosis of insects, 20 
Meteorus hypantrise, 488 
Mexican cotton boll-weevil, 243 

orange maggot, 632 
Microcera, 612 

fujikuroi, 620 
Microgaster, 16 
Microweisea misella, 476 
Millipedes, 270 
Miscible oils, 46, 620 
Mite, clover, 198 

depluming, 684 

poultry, 683 

rust, 626 

scab, 676 

silver, 626 
Monomorium minimum, 652 
pharaonis, 652 
Monophadnis rubi, 413 
Monoxia puncticoUie, 305 
Mosquitoes, 641 
Mouth-parts, 25 
Murgantia histrionica, 330 
Murky ground beetle, 14, 264 
Musca domestica, 635 
Muscardine fungus, 95 
Muscidse, 635, 657, 660 
Myriangium duriaei, 620 
Myzus cerasi, 595 

persicae, 335, 587 
ribis, 425 



702 



INDEX 



Nephelodes minians, 86 
Nezara hilaris, 236, 590 

viridula, 590, 630 
Nico-fume, 51 
Nicotine-lime spray, 537 
Nine-spotted lady-bird, 8 
Noctua clandestina, 87 
Noctuidaj, 82, 86, 110, 114, 168, 211, 

221, 228, 238, 241, 302, 327, 368 
Nose-fly, 661 
Notodontidse, 542 
Nozzles, 68 
Novius cardinalis, 665 

Oberea bimaculata, 405 
CEcanthus nigricornis, 407 

niveus, 407 
(Ecophoridae, 371 
(Estridae, 661 
ffistris ovis, 666 
Oil emulsions, 615 
Oncemetopia lateralis, 234 
undata, 234 
Onion maggot, barred winged, 378 
imported, 374 
thrips, 372 
Ophion macrurum, 16 
Orange dog, 629 

maggot, 632 
scale, 599 
Orchard dusting, 75 
Oriental peach moth, 510 
roach, 652 
Oscinus variabilis, 132 
Ox-louse, long nosed, 668 
short nosed, 668 
Ox-warble, 664 
Oyster-shell scale, 525 

Pachynematus extensicornis, 129 
Paleacrita vernata, 499 
Pale-striped flea-beetle, 361 
Papaipema nitella, 82 
Papilio cresphontes, 629 

polyxenes, 366 
Papilionidffi, 366, 629 
Parajulus impressus, 270 



Paris green, 39 
Parlatoria pergandii, 602 
Parsnip web worm, 371 
Pavement ant, 652 
Pea aphis, 293 
moth, 297 
weevil, 278 
Peach lecanium, 583 

tree bark betle, 582 

borer, 575 
twig borer, 580 
Pear leaf blister-mite, 563 
psylla, 566 
slug, 569 
thrips, 568 
Pectinophora gossypiella, 253 
Pediculida?, 648, 668 
Pediculus capitis, 649 

vestmenti, 649 
Pegomyia ceparum, 374 
fusciceps, 291 
vicina, 311 
Pemphigus betae, 299 
Pentarthron minutem, 228 
Pentatomidae, 215, 236, 330, 630 
Peridroma saucia, 85 
Periodical cicada, 479 
Periplaneta americana, 652 
australasiae, 552 
Persian insect powder, 50 
Petroleum, 45 

Phlegethontius quinquemaculatus, 
216 
sexta, 216 
Phorhia brassicae, 314 
Phorodon humuli, 593 
Phloethribus liminaris, 582 
Pholus achemon, 461 
Phorbia rubivora, 411 
Phthirius inguinalis, 649 
Phthorimaea operculella, 223, 258 
Phyllotreta pusilla, 338 
sinuata, 338 
vittata, 303, 338 
Phylloxera, grapevine, 432 
Phylloxera vastatrix, 432 



INDEX 



703 



Phytonomus posticus, 195 

punctatus, 192 
Pickle worm, 358 
Pieridae, 209, 321 
Pimpla conquisitor, 230 

inquisitor, 15 
Pink bollworm, 253 
corn-worm, 181 
scale fungus, 620 
Pipiza radicans, 12 
Pistol case-bearer, 547 
Pithy gall, 411 
Plant bug, southern green, 590 

tarnished, 571 
Plant-bugs, 236 
Plant lice, apple, 528 
cotton, 226 
louse, hop, 593 
Plathypena scabra, 211 
Plodia interpunctelia, 180 
Plum aphids, 592 
curculio, 505 
gouger, 590 
louse, mealy, 592 

rusty-brown, 594 
Plutella maculipennis, 328 
Podisus spinosus, 261 
PcEciliocapsus lineatus, 422 
Poisioned baits, 57 
Pollenia rudis, 640 
Polychrosis viteana, 462 
Pontia napi, 326 

protodice, 326 
rapsB, 321 
Porthetria dispar, 492 
Potato aphids, 272 

beetle, Colorado, 260 

three-lined, 271 
flea-beetle, 267 
scab and insects, 269 
stalk-borer, 256 
tuber-worm, 258 
Potherb butterfly, 326 
Poultry lice, 680 

mites, 683 
Power sprayers, 67 
Proctotrypidae, 17 



Prodenia ornithogallis, 241 

Pseudococcus calceolariae, 631 
citri, 606 

Psila rosae, 370 

Psilida;, 370 

Psoroptes communis bovis, 670 
equi, 671 
ovis, 671 

Psychida;, 503 

Psylla pyri, 566 

Psyllid*, 566 

Pteromalus puparum, 322 

Pteronus ribesii, 426 

Ptinida;, 224, 449 

Pubic louse, 649 

Pulex irritans, 545 

Pulvinaria innumerabilis, 605 

Pumpkin bugs, 236, 630 

Purple scale, 599 

Pyralidida?, 167, 173, 180, 206, 232, 
459 

Pyralis farinahs, 181 

Pyrausta nubialis,.173 

Pyraustida, 173, 301, 356, 363 

Pyrethrum 50 

Pyrrochoridae, 237 

Railroad worm, 559 
Raspberry bytutus, 416 

cane-borer, 405 
cane maggot, 411 
root borer, 403 
sawfly, 413 
Rat flea, 645 
Red-bugs, 237 
Red fungus, 612 

-headed scale fungus 620 
-humped apple caterpillar, 544 
-necked cane borer, 409 
spider, 254, 627 
-tailed tachina-fly, 113 
-weevil, 133 
Repellants, 39. 52 
Rhagoletis cingulata, 596 
Rhagoletis pomonella, 559 
Rhopalosiphum dianthi, 588 
padi, 535 



704 



INDEX 



Rhopalosiphum prunifolise, 535 

ribis, 425 
Rhubarb curculio, 365 
Rice weevil, 176 
Roaches, 650 
Roach-traps, 651 
Rocky Mt. locust, 95 

spotted-fever tick, 673 
Rods, extension, 73 
Root-borer, grapevine, 436 
Root-louse syrphus-fly, 12 
Root worm, grape, 441 
Rose chafer, 454 

Round-headed apple tree borer, 520 
Round scale, 602 
Rosy apple aphis, 532 
Rust mite, 626 
Rusty-brown plum louse, 594 

Saissetia hemispherica, 604 

oleaj, 602 
Salt-marsh caterpillar, 232 
mosquito, 644 
San Jose scale, 470, 602 
Sanninoidea exitiosa, 575 

opalescens, 575 
Saperda Candida, 520 
Sarcophaga carnaria, 104 
Sarcoptes scabei, 672 
Sawfly, raspberry, 413 
strawberry, 395 
wheat, 128 
Saw-toothed grain beetle, 177 
Scabs, 670 
Scab-mites, 670 
Scale insects, citrus, 599 
Scale, black, 602 

California red, 599 

chaff, 602 

cottony-cushion, 604 

Florida red, 602 

greedy, 601 

hemispherical, 604 

long, 601 

orange, 599 

oyster-shell, 525 

purple, 599 



Scale, round, 602 

San Jose, 470, 602 

scurfy, 527 

snow, 602 

soft-brown, 603 

terrapin, 583 

turtle-back, 583 

yellow, 600 

wax, 604 
Scales, armored, 599 

unarmored, 602 
Scarabseida;, 78, 369, 454 
Scenopinus fenestralis, 640 
Schistocerca americana, 100 
Schizura concinna, 544 
Sciara, 269 
Scirtothrips, 622 
ScolytidfB, 189, 475, 582 
Scolytus rugulosus, 475 
Screw-worm fly, 660 
Scurfy scale, 521 
Scutigera forceps, 655 
Searcher, 14 
Seed corn maggot, 291 
Semasia nigricana, 297 
Sesia tipuliformis, 418 
Sesiida;, 353, 403, 418, 436, 575 
Seventeen-year locust, 479 
Shaft louse, 681 
Sharpshooters, 234 
Sheep grub, 666 

tick, 669 
Short-nosed ox-louse, 668 
Shot-hole borer, 475 
Silvanus surinamensis, 177 
Silverfish, 655 
Silver-mite, 626 
Siphonaptera, 645, 687 
Siphunculata, 648, 667, 680 
Sitones hispidulus, 192 
Sitotroga cerealella, 182 
Snow scale, 602 
Soaps, 46, 51 
Sodium arsenite, 43 
fluoride, 682 
Soft-brown scale, 603 



INDEX 



705 



Soldier-bug, Southern green, 630 

spined, 261 
Solenopsis geminata, 250 
Solid stream nozzle, 70 
South African fungus, 109 
Southern green plant-bug, 590 

soldier-bug, 630 
Sphserostible coccophila, 620 
Sphecius spheciosus, 484 
Sphenophorus cariosus, 162 
maidis, 163 
obscurus, 160 
ochreus, 160 
parvulus, 160 
pertinax, 162 
placidus, 162 
robustus, 163 
scoparius, 162 
sculp tilis, 162 
Spinach aphis, 335 

flea-beetle, 304 

leaf -miner, 311 

Spined soldier-bug, 262 

tobacco-bug, 215 
Sphingidaj, 232, 461 
Sphinx-moths, 461 
Sporotrichum globuliferum, 95 
Spotted cucumber beetle, 343 

lady-bird, 10 
Spray-guns, 71 
Spray hose, 73 

connections, 74 
Spraying apparatus, 59 
Spring canker-worm, 499 
citrus whitefly, 633 
grain-aphis, 137 
Squash bug, 348 

ladybird, 351 
vine borer, 353 
Stable-fly, 640, 657 
Stalk-borer, 82 
Stickers, 58 

Sticktight flea, chicken, 689 
Stomoxys calcitrans, 640, 657 
Strainers, 74 

Strawberry crown-borer, 391 
leaf-roller, 396 



Strawberry root-louse, 389 
rootworms, 393 
sawfly, 395 
weevil, 400 
Striped blister beetle, 270, 310 
cucumber beetle, 340 
tree-cricket, 407 
turnip flea-beetle, 338 
Structure of insects, 20 
Sucking lice, 648, 667, 680 
Sugar-beet webworm, 301 
Sulphur, 50, 188 

dioxide, 55 
fumes, 55 
-soda spray, 624 
Sweet-potato beetle, two-striped, 385 
flea-beetle, 383 
root-borer, 386 
weevil, 386 
Swine mange, 672 
Synanthedon pictipes, 575 
Syrphidaj, 11,295,347 
Syrphus flies, 11, 347 
Syrphus americanus, 12 

ribesii, 11 
Syrup, poisoned, 608 
Systsechus oreas, 104 
Systena blanda, 361 

hudsonias, 303 
tseniata, 303, 363 

Tabanidae, 659 
Tabanus atratus, 660 

lineola, 660 
Tachina-flies, 104 
Tseniothrips pyri, 568 
Tapestry moth, 654 
Tarnished plant bug, 571 
Tarred paper cards, 320 
Tenebrioides mauritanicus, 179 
Tenebrionidse, 179 
Tent-caterpillar, 538 
Tenthredinidse, 128, 395, 413, 419, 

426, 569 
Termites, 655 
Terrapin bug, 330 

scale, 583 



706 



INDEX 



Tetramorium caespitum, 652 
Tetranychidse, 198, 254 
Tetranychus citri, 626 

mytilaspidis, 626 
sex-maculatus, 626 
telarius, 254 
Texas-fever tick, 673 
Three-lined leaf -bee tie, 271 

potato-beetle, 271 
Thripidse, 568 
Thrips, citrus, 620 

florida flower, 620, 625 
onion, 372 
pear, 568 
tobacco, 225 
tabaci, 372 
Throat bot, 661 
Thyridopteryx ephemeraeformis, 16, 

503 
Thysanoptera, 225, 372, 568, 620 
Ticks, 672 

fowl, 687 
Tinea biselliella, 654 
pelionella, 654 
Tineidse, 223, 258, 545, 654 
Tischeria malifoliella, 545 
Tmetocera ocellana, 549 
Tobacco, 51 

budworms, 221 
fleabeetle, 212, 267 
leaf-miner, 223 
split worm, 223 
stalk-worm, 213 
thrips, 225 
worms, 216 
Tomato fruitworm, 275 
hornworms, 275 
Tortoise beetles, 385 
Tortricidae, 297, 396, 462, 510, 549 

552 
Towers, sprayer, 74 
Toxoptera graminum, 137 
Traction sprayers, 67 
Trap-crops, 36 
Tree crickets, 407 
Tree-hopper, buffalo, 478 
Tree-tanglefoot, 52 



Trichobaris trinotata, 256 
Trichodectes parumpilosus, 667 

scalaris, 667 
Tricophaga tapetzella, 654 
Trogositidae, 179 
Trombidium locustarum, 103 
Trypeta ludens, 632 
Trypetidae, 429, 559, 596 
Turnip louse, 336 
Turtle-back scale, 603 
Twice-stabbed ladybird, 11 
Two-spotted ladybird, 9 
Tychoea brevicornis, 300 
Tyloderma fragariae, 391 
Typhlocyba comes, 456 
Typophorus canellus, 393 

Uranotes melinus, 232 

Vedalia ladybug, 605 

Warbles, ox, 664 
Wax scale, 604 
Webbing clothes moth, 654 
Webworm, fall, 485 

garden, 363 
parsnip, 371 
sugar-beet, 301 
Western cabbage flea-beetle, 338 

grass-stem sawfly, 128 
Whale-oil soap, 46 
Wheat bulb worm, 131 
joint-worm, 121 
maggots, 129 
midge, 133 
saw-flies, 127 
saw-fly borer, 129 
stem maggot, 129 
straw worm, 124 
wireworm, 81 
White arsenic, 43 
White ants, 655 
White grubs, 78, 300 
White-Hned sphinx, 232 
Whitefly, cloudy-winged, 610 
common, 610 
spring-citrus, 633 
woolly, 611 



Whiteflies, 610 

White-headed scale fungus, 620 

Window fly, 640 

Winthemia 4-pustulata, 113 

Wireworms, 80, 300 

Woolly aphis, 514 

Woolly whitefly, 611 



INDEX 

Xenopsylla chaeopsis, 645 



707 



Yellow aschersonia fungus, 612 

Yellow fever, 642 

Yellow scale, 600 

Yellow-necked apple caterpillar, 542 




Wiley Special Subject Catalogues 

For convenience a list of the Wiley Special Subject 
Catalogues, envelope size, has been printed. These 
are arranged in groups — each catalogue having a key 
symbol. (See special Subject List Below). To 
obtain any of these catalogues, send a postal using 
the key symbols of the Catalogues desired. 



1 — Agriculture. Animal Husbandry. Dairying. Industrial 
Canning and Preserving. 

2 — Architecture. Building. Concrete and Masonry, 

3 — Business Administration and Management. Law. 

Industrial Processes: Canning and Preserving; Oil and Gas 
Production; Paint; Printing; Sugar Manufacture; Textile. 

CHEMISTRY 
4a General; Analytical, Qualitative and Quantitative; Inorganic; 

Organic. 
4b Electro- and Physical; Food and Water; Industrial; Medical 

and Pharmaceutical; Sugar. 

CIVIL ENGINEERING 
5a Unclassified and Structural Engineering. 
5b Materials and Mechanics of Construction, including; Cement 

and Concrete; Excavation and Earthwork; Foundations; 

Masonry. 
5c Railroads; Surveying. 

5d Dams; Hydraulic Engineering; Pumping and Hydraulics; Irri- 
gation Engineering; River and Harbor Engineering; Water 
Supply. 



CIVIL ENGINEERING— Cow/wMci 
5e Highways; Municipal Engineering; Sanitary Engineering; 
Water Supply. Forestry. Horticulture, Botany and 
Landscape Gardening. 



6 — Design. Decoration. Drawing: General; Descriptive 
Geometry; Kinematics; Mechanical. 

ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING— PHYSICS 

7 — General and Unclassified; Batteries; Central Station Practice; 
Distribution and Transmission; Dynamo-Electro Machinery; 
Electro-Chemistry and Metallurgy; Measuring Instruments 
and Miscellaneous Apparatus. 



8 — Astronomy. Meteorology. Explosives. Marine and 
Naval Engineering. Military. Miscellaneous Books. 

MATHEMATICS 

9 — General; Algebra; Analytic and Plane Geometry; Calculus; 
Trigonometry; Vector Analysis. 

MECHANICAL ENGINEERING 
10a General and Unclassified; Foundry Practice; Shop Practice. 
10b Gas Power and Internal Combustion Engines; Heating and 
Ventilation; Refrigeration. 

10c Machine Design and Mechanism; Power Transmission; Steam 
Power and Power Plants; Thermodynamics and Heat Power. 

1 1 — Mechanics. 

12 — Medicine. Pharmacy. Medical and Pharmaceutical Chem- 
istry. Sanitary Science and Engineering. Bacteriology and 

Biology. 

MINING ENGINEERING 

13 — General; Assaying; Excavation, Earthwork, Tunneling, Etc.; 
Explosives; Geology; Metallurgy; Mineralogy; Prospecting; 
Ventilation. 

14 — Food and Water. Sanitation. Landscape Gardening. 
Design and Decoration. Housing, House Painting. 



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